Copenhagenize Design Co. in general and CEO Mikael Colville-Andersen in particular are often invited to give keynotes at conferences, festivals and universities.
Colville-Andersen is an urban mobility expert and "bicycle anthropologist" who is often referred to as Denmark's Bicycle Ambassador. He lectures around the world on how cities can - and should - re-establish the bicycle as a respected and accepted transport form. His keynotes generate healthy debate and ample press attention.
KEYNOTE TALKS
Bicycle Culture by Design - Considering Design as a Placemaking Solution for Liveable Cities . In his work with Copenhagenize, Colville-Andersen has discovered that 'urban mobility' is not as universal a language as one may think. There are many different actors involved in working towards liveable cities and reestablising the bicycle as transport. In this talk he offers a universal linguistic and practical approach, using Design as a common denominator for everything from advocacy to traffic engineering. Shouldn't we just design bicycle infrastruture like we design toasters or toothbrushes? Using basic design principles in planning and engineering makes understanding bicycle infrastruture and culture easier, as well as providing a more direct route to implementation.
100 years of traffic engineering has failed our citizens and our city streets. Traffic engineering is stuck in the same mentality as in 1935. It's time to move on. Anthropology and Design can make the difference.
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Four Goals for Promoting Urban Cycling - The most popular keynote thus far, presented in over 30 cities in 20 countries, Colville-Andersen provides the winning formula for how cities and towns can gear up for Bicycle Culture 2.0. Using Copenhagen's journey – then, now and towards the future - as an example he highlights how other cities can be inspired to take bicycle traffic seriously again.
The 500,000 people on bicycles each day in Greater Copenhagen are not 'cyclists', nor are they 'environmentalists'. They merely choose to ride because the bicycle is simply the quickest way through the city. With his unique combination of anthropology and marketing, Colville-Andersen explains how regular citizens can be encouraged to choose the bicycle. The bicycle is the most effective tool in our toolboxes for achieving that new century goal of re-creating liveable cities.
Bicycle Anthropology - presents the audience with the idea that focusing on mainstreaming urban cycling would benefit greatly from looking at the bicycle as a tool and regarding the cyclists through an anthropological viewfinder.
He also speaks about Behavourial Challenges for Promoting Urban Cycling wherein he dissects the current tendency to focus only on cyclist behaviour instead of all traffic users. This serves to further alienate those who cycle in cities in towns and does little for encouraging Citizen Cyclists to consider the bicycle as transport.
Tailer-made keynotes - We can design keynotes to suit any event or venue.
Social Media - In addition to the bicycle culture related keynotes, Colville-Andersen also speaks about social media and the art of building a brand via the social toolbox provided by the internet. He highlights how Cycle Chic and Copenhagenize - and the global return of the bicycle to the public consciousness - was made possible through blogging, twitter and facebook. His point of departure is his own experience in taking two of the phrases he coined - Cycle Chic and Copenhagenize - and building the brands through his blogs, and then making the jump from brand to business.
