 Everything started from nothing. Governments, universities, cuisines, art, tools of mass communication and transport… all the institutions we interact with, and rely on, in our daily lives at one time didn’t exist. It can be easy to take these things for granted, but they all had to be created by someone. They weren’t always there. And they were often developed in the face of considerable odds and real challenges. The Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety is no exception. Historically, the World Health Organization (WHO) organized the world’s road safety NGOs, but, by 2009, the WHO had decided it was time for the NGOs to fly from the nest and self-govern. A number of NGOs were then invited to Geneva to discuss the formation of an independent coordinating body for NGOs to advocate for global road safety and road victims. Thus, the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety was born. But I can assure you that it wasn’t always easy. Especially in the early years, holding the Alliance together was quite challenging. Weaving together a coalition from a global, diverse, passionate group of activists was always going to be tough. Nevertheless, it worked, and we now have the Alliance that we all know and love advocating for NGOs and their missions, organizing Global Meetings, and developing grant and training opportunities. However, this didn’t just happen. There is one person, above all others, we have to thank for this achievement: Floor Lieshout, Executive Director of the NGO Youth for Road Safety (YOURS), and a founding board member of the Alliance. With a tireless work ethic, deep strategic vision and intelligence, and saint-like patience, Floor, more than anyone, is responsible for the Alliance that we have at our disposal today. Over the last seven years, Floor has spent countless hours working on every aspect of the Alliance: developing the strategic plan, organizing Global Meetings, handling politics, and more. Moreover, he did it all as a volunteer, totally without financial compensation. Now, with a new baby boy and with YOURS busier than ever, Floor has decided that it is time for him to step down from his role as Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Alliance. I can’t tell you how much we will all miss Floor on the board. We all owe Floor a tremendous debt of gratitude. And not just us, but everyone around the world who benefits from safer roads and the strong, unified voice of road safety and road victim’s NGOs on the global stage. When I consider my professional life and my own NGO, I sometimes reflect that the best indicator of success will be how the entities, systems and projects that I have been involved with carry on beyond my own involvement. By that measure, Floor can, and should, be very proud of his accomplishments with the Alliance. I think we can all agree that the results speak for themselves. I’m sure this would embarrass him, but I’m going to go ahead anyway and encourage you to email Floor a little note of thanks: floor@youthforroadsafety.org Thank you, Floor! Yours truly, Jeffrey Witte President Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety Executive Director Amend |
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