Now it's time to work together!   The fifth annual Podcar City Conference [PCCC5] is less than two weeks away and I encourage everyone to begin considering how we maximize the various invaluable opportunities awaiting those of us attending in Stockholm. On Tuesday evening, September 6th, many of the world’s top professionals authorizing, designing, building and investing in the fast emerging Personal Rapid Transit (PRT/ATN/Podcar) industry will begin circulating, interacting and sharing for three meaningful days.

At the cusp of another well attended PCCC gathering, I can not overstate how much I believe that our ongoing events are helping to effect the ways in which this burgeoning transportation sector expresses its views, goals and collective aim of thrusting eco-friendly industriousness into the public works pipeline.

At our conferences, we break the ice with a relaxed, low-key affair aimed at introductions and re-connections; we sit and absorb the keynote lectures together; we break out into symposiums, presentations and workshops; we eat, chat and network during the in-between time; we question, teach and we learn from one another. Although I enjoy a good presentation, it's all about the informal summits for me—the direct information exchange, the AHA! moments, the inspiration, the criticism, and anything else that arises between intelligent and creative people in an open environment. It is a truly lively experience, indeed—and not for lack of important and timely topics.

To take seriously the colossal challenges evident in achieving a more sustainable way of living on this planet, we have got to fully accept that we must dramatically alter our lifestyles—now. In the previous Newsletter I emphasized how important a reliable, effective and accessible transportation system is for healthy democracy by facilitating the safe and efficient passage of minds and bodies. Thus, while a totalitarian regime does its best to limit accessibility to infrastructure, a free society works to liberate the movement of people, goods and ideas.

Knowing, therefore, that fossil fuel markets are taking their last breathes, that the global workforce is struggling to cover its cost of living in today’s economy, and that we continually erode our civic spaces and natural environment by prioritizing the utilization of automobiles over that of safer and more cost effective modes of transit, let’s work together to radically change our mobility lifestyle paradigm today!

IST Welcomes you to the 2011 Stockholm Conference. Knowing that we must fundamentally change how we create and utilize energy, how we effectively manage our cities and infrastructure, and how we work to heal our planet, we make it our mission to help develop more reliable, affordable, efficient, safe and fun transportation around the world – we value everyone’s input in making progress toward this end!

If you have not registered to join us from Sept 6-8, seats are limited, so please sign up as soon as possible. Thank You.

/ Christer