Category: Webinars and presentations

On April 16th and 17th, 2026, the NL-EU-India Urban Mobility Conference took place in Mumbai. Bringing together Indian, Dutch, and European expertise, the summit was designed as a “knowledge bridge” connecting global best practices with local realities, and translating ideas into action on the ground.

The Dutch Cycling Embassy was proud to contribute to the program to ensure cycling is treated as a serious, scalable and inclusive transport solution in India. International Relations Manager Chris Bruntlett was present to give a keynote presentation entitled “The Dutch Blueprint for Urban Vitality”, and to moderate several sessions and panel discussions.

In addition to countless valuable contributions from the Indian side, the event was organised by Geert Kloppenburg, and included interventions from Dirk de Jager of Sustainable Solutions, Niels van Oort of TU Delft, Sonja Munnix of the Netherlands Enterprise Agency, Willem Frederik Metzelaar of EIT Urban Mobility, and Henk Swarttouw of the European Cyclists’ Federation.

We hope to build on this momentum with future seminars and workshops in India later in 2026!

On Wednesday, March 18th, 2026, Dutch Cycling Embassy International Relations Manager Chris Bruntlett gave a (virtual) presentation to a gathering of Kent Council (UK) Leaders. The session was entitled “Active Travel, the Dutch Cycling Embassy Experience”, and began with brief updates from Kent County Council Active Travel Group Manager Nikola Floodgate and Medway Sustainable Transport Manager James Sutton. Following their contributions, Chris’ keynote offered insights into how the Netherlands’ approach to cycling has gradually evolved over the past fifty years. He introduced the core principles behind this transformation, highlighted practical lessons for the Kent context, and showed how similar ideas are being adapted elsewhere. His talk was followed by a Q&A with Nikola, James, and the various participants. Special thanks to Councillor Ben Chapelard for inviting us to join this meeting.

On Thursday, November 20th, 2025, the Dutch Cycling Embassy joined the Palm Beach Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for a webinar entitled “The Dutch Cycling Transformation: Infrastructure and Communication Strategies”.

In a public event prior to a planned ThinkBike Workshop in January 2026, International Relations Manager Chris Bruntlett shared how the Netherlands transitioned from car-centric to cycle-friendly communities—highlighting key infrastructure changes, challenges, and long-term benefits including health, economic impact, and quality of life.

Joining him was Melissa Bruntlett, founder of Modacity Creative, who explored how effective communication strategies have helped Dutch and international communities build public support for active transportation initiatives.

During a following Q&A session, they discussed opportunities for implementing these solutions in Southeast Florida, not by copying-and-pasting, but by context-specific adaptations according to local geographical, societal, and cultural conditions.

You can watch a recording of the session on the Palm Beach MPO’s YouTube channel.

On April 30th, 2025, the Dutch Cycling Embassy hosted a German-language webinar on the role of cycling data in mobility planning and decision-making. Experts from the Netherlands shared valuable perspectives on how data is collected, analysed, and applied to improve cycling infrastructure and policies.

Expert insights

• Jeroen Drabbe (Abel Leisure) spoke about practical applications from the Netherlands and Ireland, explaining why bicycles are counted, the techniques and technologies used, and the data-driven analysis that can be produced.
• Robin Kleine (Mobycon) shared findings from the Interreg MegaBITS project, illustrating how intelligent transport systems and cycling data support mobility improvements, with examples from the Netherlands and Germany.
• Joost de Kruijf (Dutch Cycling Intelligence) explored how integrating multiple cycling datasets strengthens public and private infrastructure policies and cycling promotion programs, drawing from a Dutch initiative to structure cycling data networks.

The presentations sparked a dynamic and engaging discussion, with participants actively exchanging ideas and sharing insights and suggestions.

The webinar reinforced the importance of cycling data in shaping informed mobility strategies, justifying investments, and optimising cycling conditions. As interest in data-driven decision-making continues to grow, cycling stakeholders will, without a doubt, have valuable opportunities to explore new ways of using data to support sustainable urban mobility.

On April 9th, 2025, Dutch Cycling Embassy International Relations Manager Chris Bruntlett participated (virtually) in the Stockholm chapter of the Cykelfrämjandet (Cycle Promotion Centre)’s annual general meeting, hosted at the Netherlands Embassy in Sweden. The presentation was entitled “Future Trends in Dutch Cycling”, during which Chris offered insights into the future of cycling in the Netherlands, including the rise of the electric cyclist, the train cyclist, and the freight cyclist. The talk was followed by a Q&A with the participants.

DCE´s Germany coordinator Nils Steinhäuser presented at the conference of cycling and walking friendly cities in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern last week. In his presentation he focused on the rural area of the Netherlands and which solutions and best practices were applied to transform the public spaces in small villages and along main roads. Other presentations focused on the challenges of small municipalities in implementing and planning cycling infrastructure and bureaucratic challenges they face. The organisation of walking and cycling friendly cities unveiled an AI tool support them in the planning process and assist in getting subsidies. The event contributed to the exchange of municipalities among each other and brought in external expertise and experiences to promote innovative solutions for better active mobility.

AGFK-MV Fachtagung

On Wednesday, February 19th, 2025, the Dutch Cycling Embassy hosted a webinar co-organized with HUB Cycling and the Consul General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Vancouver. It explored the Dutch approach to integrating bike share programs with the wider public transportation system, and what benefits a similar system can bring to British Columbia.

Contributors included:

• Chris Bruntlett, International Relations Manager, Dutch Cycling Embassy
• Mirtha Gamiz, Planner, New Mobility, TransLink
• Mia Kohout, CEO, Vancouver Bike Share aka Mobi by Rogers

The session was moderated by Sebastiaan Messerschmidt, Consul General, Consulate General of the Netherlands in Vancouver. To view a recording of the hour-long webinar, click here.

On February 13th, 2025, the Dutch Cycling Embassy hosted a webinar on the role of coloured asphalt in creating inviting and safe cycling infrastructure. Experts from industry, municipalities, and research institutions shared their knowledge on its production, installation, and strategic use in urban mobility.

Expert insights

– Sheranie van Hassel (Ventraco) provided an overview of the production and technical aspects of coloured asphalt, highlighting its durability in particular.
– Ben Schaipp (Municipality of Utrecht) shared practical applications, explaining how Utrecht integrates coloured asphalt into cycling infrastructure to enhance comfort, attractiveness, visibility and safety.
– Ineke Spapé (Breda University of Applied Sciences) discussed user experience, urban mobility strategies and the role of (surface) design in promoting cycling-friendly cities.

Participants engaged in a lively discussion, exchanging questions and ideas on implementation strategies, technical considerations, and lessons learned from real-world projects. The interactive format encouraged thoughtful questions and valuable knowledge-sharing among attendees.

Looking ahead

As cities increasingly explore innovative approaches to cycling infrastructure, coloured asphalt continues to emerge as an effective tool for improving safety and urban design. The Dutch Cycling Embassy looks forward to further conversations and collaborations in this space.

The second week of December 2024 was Cycling Week in Chiang Mai, Thailand. A week filled with bike rides, pop-up bike infrastructure, exhibits, and a webinar. The pop-up bike infrastructure turned out to be so successful that the city is exploring making the bike lanes permanent. During the webinar, on Friday 13th, participants watched the documentary ‘Why We Cycle’ made by Nieuw & Verbeterd, which explores cycling culture in the Netherlands and why so many people find it easy to ride their bikes. After the screening, Margot Daris of the DCE gave a brief presentation about how different user groups profit from a well-established cycling culture. Following her presentation, two lecturers at the School of Architecture and Design in Bangkok presented about their work, including examples of redesigning streets in Bangkok. Finally, we had a lively discussion about cycling infrastructure and behavior change.