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.
Staging evidence for safer school streets
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:
- 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)
- Install an App that collects GPX-Tracks (data that links speed with location)
- Ride the busses according to your data collection plan
- 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)
- If everything works out the result should be maps like the ones you see here.
- Think about how you want to communicate the data: In a confidential setting or rather to a bigger audience?
Mapping and analysing facades
"We need parking space otherwise our shops will die!" This is an argument often brought forward by opponents of street transformation. The urban design studio prostorož confronted this claim with evidence. They analysed the facades of the street by the following categories: Lively facade, active facade, monument, empty facade, unremarkable facade. They could show that a lot of the ground floor was at that point in time not occupied.
prostorož combined this analysis with analysing parking place occupancy and human behaviour to build an even stronger argument: A street full of cars is not helping shops at the moment. By combining all these analysis they managed to convince the decision makers to give that street a human friendly makeover!
Public Engagement Onion
The Public Engagement Onion is a visual framework originally developed by the Wellcome Trust that maps the different levels and forms of public engagement — from broad, one-directional communication to deep, two-way collaboration.
Like the layers of an onion, the model moves from the outside in: the outer layers represent activities such as broadcasting information or raising awareness, where the engagement is relatively wide-reaching but shallow. Moving toward the center, activities become more interactive and participatory, culminating in shared decision-making and co-creation at the core.
Onboarding framework
The Onboarding Framework is a structured yet flexible tool designed to help grassroots civil society initiatives welcome and integrate new volunteers with as little friction as possible.
The framework helps initiatives answer three core questions: What does a new volunteer need to know, feel, and do to get started? Where do their skills and interests fit best? And how can the organization make that first step feel easy, welcoming, and worthwhile?
By providing a clear path from curiosity to commitment, the Onboarding Framework reduces dropout at the earliest stage, builds a sense of belonging from day one, and ensures that volunteer energy is channeled effectively — strengthening the initiative's capacity from the bottom up.
Understanding your target groups
Gamification of climate friendly behaviour
Crosswalk action
