Welcome to the UNLOCK15-Toolbox - we are collecting tools to empower „agents of change“ from civil society as well as city officials to unlock existing lock-ins. We hope you will find some relevant tools to drive change towards mobility transition in your context!

From experience, three types of tools are need for real change: tools to create and communicate evidence, tools to envision possible futures and scenarios and participatory tools for on-site action.

Evidence

This type of tools help you to collect evidence, which supports the change you are aiming for. Some tools also allow crowd-based approaches to involve citizens in a broad manner. Evidence helps to convince decision makers to back-up change.

Measuring the 15-min city: Flowers of Proximity

The flowers are a planning tool that invites participants to look beyond their current travel routines by imagining instead how they would like to get around. This perspective grounds accessibility planning in people's needs and desires, helping make cities more livable, sustainable, and fair.

15min-City online Maps

The map shows how close services are if one lives in different areas of the city: in red areas the time needed to access the closest services is on average higher than 15 minutes, while the blue are 15-minute areas. We consider the average time of accessibility to the closest 20 POIs.

Measuring the speed of public transport

"We can’t reduce the speed limit on this road because the busses would loose time!“ This or similar arguments may come up in discussions about street transformations. In those situations, it can help to bring evidence into the discussion. For example by measuring the speed of busses. Think in advance how to make your data collection as valid as possible within your ressources. To produce solid evidence about the speed of public transport we suggest the following steps:

1. Make a plan how you will collect your data: What do you want to measure (one busline in both directions between bus stop X and Y), when (on peak/off peak, which days) and how often (how many times per day)
2. Install an App that collects GPX-Tracks (data that links speed with location)
3. Ride the busses according to your data collection plan
4. Find someone who knows how to use QGIS (open source program for making maps) and install the plug-in for GPX Segment importer (https://plugins.qgis.org/plugins/GpxSegmentImporter/#plugin-about)
5. If everything works out the result should be maps like the ones you see here.
6. Think about how you want to communicate the data: In a confidential setting or rather to a bigger audience?

more tools for Evidence…

Vision

In this category you find tools that help you to create a vision of what you are aiming for. A strong vision is key for driving change because it helps you to grow as a movement and to shift public opinions. This category also includes tools that help you envision how you want to work together as a group.

Local project advisory board

A local project adivsory board is made out of local people e.g. shop owners, residents as well as people from the administration. The various perspectives provided by the project advisory board are intended to help identify planning requirements at an early stage and to take them into account more effectively as the project progresses. They act, so to speak, as seismographs for the mood and needs within the neighbourhood.

Plenary for sharing emotions

A plenary for emotions is a structured group format that creates dedicated space for emotions and interpersonal dynamics within a collective or initiative — separate from task-oriented or decision-making meetings. Rather than pushing emotions to the margins of group life, the Emo-Plenum treats them as essential information: a signal about the health, motivation, and tensions within the group.

It is recommended to have a person that facilitates the plenary. This means guiding through the structure and keeping an eye on the time. This is how a Plenary of Emotions can be structured:

1. Round: Each person expresses how they feel. In regards to the group but also in general. Resist the temptation to react to what has already been said and focus on yourself. The round is finished when everybody has shared something.
2. Round: In the same order as before people can react to what has been said by others. The focus lies on validating and relating to emotions of others not jumping into problem solving mode right away. The round can go as long as people have to say something.
3. Round: Collect next steps from what has been said. This can happen but doesn't have to.

A shared digital ToDo-List to get you vision on track

There are several digital to do lists out there, that can help you as a group to organise projects, assign tasks, set deadlines, and track progress collaboratively. Trello is free until ten collaborators, wekan and kanboard are completely open source.

more tools for Vision…

Action

Small steps towards the realisation of local change can help to make the vision tangible and also easier to be discussed. Tools for action help to make the impact of change tangible and involve local communities.

Bikebus

Bikebus is an organized bicycle group for children who cycle safely to school together with accompanying adults. Like a school bus, only by bicycle.

Gamification of climate friendly behaviour

Gamification is the application of game-design mechanics — such as points, rewards, competitions, challenges, and progress tracking — to non-game contexts in order to motivate behaviour change. In the context of urban sustainability and mobility, it turns everyday choices like taking public transport, cycling, or saving energy into visible, rewarding actions that feel meaningful and fun rather than obligatory.

Tree Budget Graz

Tree budget Graz is an innovative financing model introduced by the City of Graz to systematically fund the planting and maintenance of urban trees. It draws from three sources: compensation fees collected under the city's tree protection ordinance (which requires replanting or financial compensation when trees are removed), voluntary tree sponsorships open to individuals and companies, and project-specific budget approvals by the city council. Together, these streams create a dedicated financial pool that ensures greening efforts are not dependent on a single, uncertain budget line.

more tools for Action…