Decentralised projects

Former projects:

Carfree Area Pilot Project (Carfreearea) - The project proposal was submitted in June 2009 to IEE Intelligent Energy Europe. The Network is involved in the dissemination stage, the network member “Institute for Ecological Urban Development” as partner in the consortium. In addition Simon Field is cooperating within the team of the University of Aberdeen.
The Carfreearea project is aiming to meet the challenges of climate change, depletion of energy resources, air pollution and a decreasing quality of life by designing urban areas, where car traffic is reduced to an absolute minimum (mostly for emergency and public services related transport needs, using appropriate vehicles), promoting less car-dependent lifestyles and creating benefits for all people living without a car. It focuses on real estate development based on sustainable transport, i.e. on the planning of infrastructure (predominantly) for pedestrians (and other non-motorised means of transport) and public transport, supported by the necessary density and mix of land uses.
project coordinator: Prof. Günter Emberger (Vienna University of Technology)
Further info & contact details see: Carfree Area Pilot Project (Carfreearea)

The Ecotopia Biketour is a youth-run long-distance bike tour that has taken place each summer since 1990, with 30-60 participants at a time, over a period of 4-6 weeks. The goal is to bring together youth from across Europe and create a mobile sustainable community in which decisions are made together on a consensus basis, and tasks are equally shared. The annual bike tour, which was coordinated by World Carfree Network from 2004 until 2006, stops over at the Ecotopia gathering, held in a different country each year. Currently it is no longer coordinated by the World Carfree Network, yet it is advised by the network and has become a decentralised project. The 2007 ride started in northern Spain and ended in Portugal. In 2008 the bike tour traveled through Bulgaria and ended up in Sinop, Turkey.
WCN project representative: Pippa Gallop -

The Carfree Ecovillage Project (projet Cyclâne, in French) seeks to set up carfree ecovillages in France and possibly beyond. Project members are looking for sites of five hectares or more – with at least one building, a nearby train station (10 km max.) and public transport access and far from asphalt – that could be bought or rented for long-term use.
The project intends to mix activities such as farming, production, culture and social events to create an economy of proximity and to develop research and innovation. Infrastructure for bicycles, horses and donkeys and public transportation would be developed in order to make carfree life nice and easy.
There are two listservs on the topic: [villagessansvoiture] (in French) and [carfreeecovillages] (in English).
project coordinator: François Schneider -
tel: +(33) 4-72-00-09-82 or +(33) 6-74-39-21-06.

Independent international projects within the network include:

This page was last updated 15 February 2011