Walking against obesity
A new tendency begins in Italy, with a program aimed at reducing vehicle emissions. This program consists of cheering children on walking to school, and abandon the buses. Thus each morning, about 450 pupils travel along 17 school bus routes to 10 elementary schools with zero school buses.
Indeed in 2003, to confront the triple threats of childhood obesity, local traffic jams and most important a rise in global greenhouse gases abetted by car emissions, an environmental group here proposed a retro-radical concept: children should walk to school. Lecco's mayor Giulio Greppi add: «we feel special, because we know that is good for the environment».
This avant-gardist concept tend to be exported in other countries, like the United-States or Britain, which give money to encourage students to walk or ride their bicycles.
Although carbon dioxide emissions from industry are declining on both continents, those from transportation account for almost one-third of all greenhouse-gas emissions in the United States and 22 percent in European Union countries. Across the globe, but especially in Europe, where European Union countries have pledged to reduce greenhouse gas production by 2012 under the United Nation's Kyoto protocol, there is great pressure to reduce car emissions.
This new tendency must be encouraged, thus children receive fare cards that are punched each day. The bus routes have distinctive names (the one through the graveyard is the mortobus), and compete for prizes like pizza parties for the students.
The parents are also enthusiastic, and praise his new program. For them, this had an effect within the family. “When we go for shopping you think about walking, you don’t automatically use the car” said Luciano Prandoni, a parent.
This concept is also known in France, some towns have created such routes, nammed «pédibus» : some unworking pupils' parents bring child to school.. It remains to be seen whether this new program, is just a new environnement concept or a real sustainable growing program.
Pierre Sanchez and Jean-Baptiste Bouché.