Trainings in Quito
This exclusive workshop was designed specifically for women leaders from waste picker associations Buena Esperanza de Pichincha and ASOREUN, and bicycle courier associations in Quito, in cooperation with Fundación Red Sostenible.
This comprehensive program aimed to equip women with the skills and knowledge to excel in their roles and become stronger leaders within their organizations. Participants engaged in hands-on training, leadership development, and sustainable practices, all within a supportive and interactive learning environment.
Participants learned how to operate and maintain electric cargo bikes safely and efficiently for waste collection and deliveries. They gained valuable skills in communication, teamwork, and assertiveness, empowering themselves and others. The workshop also focused on women’s rights as workers and strategies to prevent gender-based violence, while discovering ways to incorporate environmentally friendly practices into their daily work.
The workshop combined theoretical knowledge with practical sessions, prioritizing interactive learning. Experienced instructors provided personalized guidance to small groups, and upon completion, participants received training materials and ongoing support to share their knowledge with other women in their organizations.
This workshop offered a comprehensive package to strengthen participants' abilities and impact. They gained the knowledge and skills to operate electric cargo bikes efficiently, boosting productivity, and focused on leadership development, empowering them to become role models within their organizations. The workshop addressed women’s safety and well-being, fostering improved working conditions, and contributed to a more sustainable Quito through the adoption of environmentally friendly practices. SOLUTIONSplus rented three locally-made electric cargo bikes designed for comfort, safety, and efficiency, making their work easier and more enjoyable.
The workshop trained 16 women leaders from Buena Esperanza de Pichincha, ASOREUN, and women bike couriers of Quito over several days of intensive training. This included six workshops, each lasting 4 hours, conducted by four instructors and six experts from the urban cycling school "Muévete en Bici" and TacuriBike y Workshop.
Empowering Women through Sustainable Mobility:
SOLUTIONSplus Project Workshop
Workshop Highlights
Practical Training
Participants will learn how to operate and maintain electric cargo bikes safely and efficiently for waste collection and deliveries.
Leadership Development
Gain valuable skills in communication, teamwork, and assertiveness, empowering themselves and others.
Women’s Rights and Safety
Focus on women’s rights as workers and strategies to prevent gender-based violence.
Sustainable Practices
Discover ways to incorporate environmentally friendly practices into daily work.
Capacity Building Initiative for Women Drivers in Quito: Empowering Sustainable Mobility through driving license acquisition and job creation opportunities
Course Description
The SOLUTIONSplus project recently concluded a capacity building activity aimed at women drivers in Quito, facilitated in collaboration with the National Transit Agency of Ecuador (ANT) and EcoVial. This initiative aimed to empower women by equipping them with the necessary skills and qualifications to obtain professional driver’s licenses. Specifically, the program supported 5 women to obtain a Type C license for passenger vehicles and 12 women to acquire a Type E license for vehicles used in the courier sector. To support this endeavor, UEMI partnered with Empresa Pública Metropolitana de Transporte de Pasajeros Quito (EPMTPQ), which manages the largest public transportation system in Ecuador. EPMTPQ aims to increase women's participation in the transport sector by 5% through targeted actions, facilitated with support from UEMI.
The SOLUTIONSplus project co-developed innovative and integrated e-mobility solutions for urban passenger and freight transport in participatory Living Labs across various cities, including Quito. This project provided tools and knowledge on low-carbon urban logistics, light electric vehicles (LEV), charging infrastructure, batteries, and e-buses. These resources were incorporated into the SOLUTIONSplus online toolbox and shared with the city, addressing the knowledge gaps identified during the project.
The project facilitated regional training programs and workshops, where key topics such as low-carbon urban logistics, LEV regulations, charging infrastructure, and e-buses were discussed. The project also initiated several demonstration activities in Quito, including seed funding for start-ups like ECargoBikeUIO, Sidertech, and Grupo Miral, which focused on local design and assembly of various LEVs for logistics and passenger transport.
The manufacturing and testing of 10 e-cargo bikes were finalized based on user feedback, leading to significant efficiency gains and emission reductions during the first pilot phase of the multimodal e-mobility hub in the Historic Center of Quito. Additionally, the Mobility as a Service (MaaS) app, developed through SOLUTIONSplus, was piloted with students to streamline journey planning and ticketing for public transportation.
About EcoVial
EcoVial, authorized by the ANT since 2013, was selected as the training school for this program due to its comprehensive curriculum and alignment with the project’s timeline. The school’s facilities and training modules met the standards necessary for the professional development of the participants.
About EPMTPQ
In Quito, the capital of Ecuador, the Metropolitan Public Company of Passengers Transportation (EPMTPQ) counts with 600 drivers of which only 10 are women (1,70%). Considering that the EPMTPQ is procuring 50 new fully electric trolleybuses, this pilot proposal seeks to increase the number of female drivers, which means including 10 new female drivers for the new electric bus units. In this context, the proposal considers the employment gender gap in the transportation sector of Ecuador. This proposal aims to increase the representation of women in the e-bus driving workforce, while addressing gender disparities in the transportation sector and challenging traditional gender roles.
Course Curriculum
The course covered a variety of essential topics over 480 hours and six months, including:
• Road Education
• Law and Regulations of Land Transportation
• Traffic and Road Safety
• Basic Mechanics
• Human Relations
• First Aid
• Environmental Education
• Geography of Ecuador
• Computing
• English
• Driving Theory
• Driving Practice
• Applied Psychology
• Customer Service
The participants were selected from a pool of women who had previously excelled in the "Courier Operator" course conducted by the Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja (UTPL) in partnership with World Vision Ecuador, the Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Society, Grupo Entregas, and the UN Refugee Agency.
The program successfully prepares women to operate vehicles for logistics purposes. These graduates are now poised to enter the workforce, contributing to reducing the gender gap in the transport sector. Their involvement is expected to extend to the E-MOVILIZA pilot project and collaboration with Grupo Entregas for job placements.
The capacity building program is embedded in the SOLUTIONSplus project and aims to scale up within the E-MOVILIZA project. A continuation of this effort has resulted in a proposal for UNEP, focusing on increasing women's participation in the e-bus driving workforce in Quito. This proposal includes capacity building, financial support, and targeted training programs to address gender disparities in the transportation sector.
Peer Exchange: Clean Air Asia and EPN (Quito) peer exchange on eco-driving
Date: 31 May 2024
Venue: Virtual
Organizer: UEMI, CAA, WI, EPN/Quito
Clean Air Asia will conduct a 90-minute (tbc) introductory and informative session on eco-driving for Escuela Politécnica Nacional (EPN) in Quito. This session will cover key points from the eco-driving guidebook developed by Clean Air Asia, including manuals, modules, handouts, and assessment forms. The aim is to equip EPN with the knowledge and tools to utilize the LCMM tool, developed by T-Systems for application in Nanjing, China, which is planned to be tested in Quito, enhancing the driving behavior of municipal public transport operators.
Latin American e-Mobility Forum 2024
Date: 18-21 March 2024
Venue: Bogotá, Colombia
Main organizers: SOLUTIONSplus & GEF7 Regional Platform
SOLUTIONSplus contribution: Organisation, content provision and funding
The SOLUTIONSplus Project and the GEF-7 Regional Platform for Support and Investment in Electric Mobility will jointly hold the Latin American Electric Mobility Forum 2024, which will take place between March 18th and 21th in Bogotá, Colombia, as part of the Capacity Building activities carried out by the two projects.
The Forum will begin with a high-level opening session on March 18th, in which decision-makers, transport operators and researchers from across the region will discuss the opportunities and challenges brought about by electric mobility. On Tuesday, March 19th and Wednesday, March 20th, participants will attend parallel sessions focused on: 1) Electrification of public transport, led by the International Union of Public Transport academy - UITP Academy, and 2) Low-carbon urban logistics led by ICLEI and the Wuppertal Institute (WI), which will culminate on Thursday, March 21th with specific field visits. Likewise, the second meeting between the partner countries of the Global Electric Mobility Program in Latin America and the Caribbean will be held.
SOLUTIONSplus partners co-organising / participating: UNEP, WI, UEMI, CMM, SIMUS, IDIADA, ICLEI, UITP, ERTICO, CODATU, UN-Habitat, Municipality of Quito. Additionally, the SOL+ start-ups (LEV manufacturers & logistics operators) in pilot and replication cities were invited and funded to participate.
E-mobility and gender workshop
On April, UEMI will organize a workshop with public and private key stakeholders to validate and disseminate the results of the ‘E-Mobility as a Driver for Change - Towards a gender transformative and just transition to electric mobility’ project. The workshop’s goal is to show and discuss the findings from the baseline report and policy assessment about the gaps on gender and E-mobility.
The contents of the workshop will focus on the identification of barriers for women to be part of the whole value chain of the transport sector (transport users, transport workers and decision-makers), and what measures (norms, policies, knowledge and experiences) can be taken to improve gender equity in this area and close the gender gap. The idea is to show the gender-transport-climate nexus in policy and business decisions and how data collection can help to raise awareness and knowledge on how different transport policies or services will impact men and women differently.
The plan is to hold the event together with the inception workshop of the GEF7 “Support the shift towards low-carbon electric mobility in Ecuador” project.
The SOLUTIONSplus Workshop took place over three days in Montevideo, focusing on EV charging infrastructure and regulatory frameworks.
Day 1: Monday, June 17, 2024
The event began at the Municipality of Montevideo with introductions and welcome speeches. Sessions covered regulatory frameworks in Europe, with presentations by Harm Weken, Roland Ferwerda, and Angel Lopez. Workshops discussed regulatory frameworks and charging network interoperability in Uruguay. The day concluded with discussions on challenges in Latin America and building robust regulatory frameworks, followed by a wrap-up session and dinner.
Day 2: Tuesday, June 18, 2024
The second day started with presentations on data-driven e-mobility market development and policies from various Latin American countries. There was a session on data-driven policymaking in the EU and keynote presentations on the EV data ecosystem in Latin America. After lunch, best practices from Europe were discussed, followed by a roundtable on EV market development. The day ended with a workshop on regional e-mobility strategies and a closing session, followed by an informal dinner.
Day 3: Wednesday, June 19, 2024
The final day included the commissioning of ChargePoint charging stations and a site visit to the bike lane along the "Rambla." Participants had opportunities for photos, social media engagement, and bilateral meetings on specific topics discussed earlier in the event. The day concluded with a walk around the Old City.