Endorsements of this nomination have come in from colleagues working in a variety of fields, and from places as far away as Australia, Britain, Belgium, Canada, France, Spain, Thailand, the United States and, of course, the Netherlands. Here is a selection of letters of support received here by early July.

Messages of support

From: Ben Hamilton-Baillie
Sent: Thursday, June 30, 2005 8:26 PM

What is so remarkable about the man is that he has achieved such a transformation in thinking from the basis of a traffic engineer (not a profession famed for its profound thinking and original analysis). Through remarkable persistence, patience and professional commitment he has managed to put in place well over 100 "shared space" schemes, transforming the urban and rural landscape of his native Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe. I have never met a man so generous with his time, so modest and unassuming about his achievements, and so humane in his application of technology to the benefit of everyday human society.

I was in the Netherlands to stand in for him, showing a large party of Germans around his work. The Leuveinplein in Drachten, a busy junction surrounded by water jets whose height are linked to the volume of traffic, continues to astonish me for its originality and brilliance. It is still being formally evaluated (it takes a minimum of three years), but the unofficial figures for traffic flow, safety and pedestrian activity suggest that it is a remarkable success. The local official, Koop Kerkstra, can provide information about the evaluation and the scheme. (k.kerkstra@smallingerland.nl).

Ben Hamilton-Baillie
Hamilton-Baillie Associates Ltd
32, Kingsdown Parade
Bristol BS6 5UF UK

From: Naderi, Jody
Sent: Thursday, June 30, 2005 5:23 PM

Dear Eric

I could not agree with you more!! I am currently seeking funds to document Hans incredible work on my trip to present at the Walk21 conference in Zurich. This will mean stopping in all locations where they have worked and conducting a brief case study and then writing up one of the places directly.

Professor Jody R. Naderi
Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning
Texas Transportation Institut
Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843-3137, USA

From: John Adams
Sent: Friday, July 01, 2005

VERY happy to support this nomination. I've done the pilgrimage, and think he is wonderful.

The work of Hans Monderman is challenging radically the criteria by which the contributions of technology to the solution of transport problems should be judged. He has compelled transport planners and highway engineers to look afresh at the way people and technology relate to each other.

His work merits recognition by a World Technology Award for the Environment because of the profound influence it is having on the search for appropriate technologies.

Prof. John Adams
Geography Department
University College London
26 Bedford Way London WC1H 0AP UK

From: Tracey Axelsson
Sent: Friday, July 01, 2005

I think Hans Monderman's work is so important to the everyone -- showing that the city can be walkable and profitable at the same time! Please add my name to the list of supporters.

Tracey Axelsson, Executive Director
CAN Co-operative Auto Network
P.O. Box 47044, Denman
Vancouver, BC V6G 3E1Canada

From: Meta Boer
Sent: Friday, July 01, 2005 8:24 AM

I'd like to nominate Hand Monderman for this year's World Technology Award for the Environment.

Is this the way to do it, or is there a special form for the nomination? If so I can't find it. And I'd like to sent to my colleagues and tell them right away how they can do it.

Meta Boer
ROV-Utrecht
The Netherlands

From: Vanackere, Karel
Sent: Monday, July 04, 2005 9:26 AM

I strongly support the nomination of Hans. His contribution to another way of dealing with the human environment should be spread around the world.

arch. Karel Vanackere
hoofd productgroep verkeer & ruimte
Grontmij, Oostendse Steenweg 146
B-8000 Brugge, Belgium

From: Mikel E. Murga
Sent: Tuesday, July 05, 2005 4:49 PM

This is to express my full support for the nomination of Mr Hans Monderman Those of us who face traffic issues in the urban environment are deeply grateful for his leadership and courage in a climate where one is faced with far too many packaged technological solutions and trendy fashions.

His track record should be understood as a blessing for the technological world which has benefitted from the kind of critical examination and no-nonsense approach that Mr Monderman has embraced. We need to appreciate the hard and the soft approaches, and to separate the hoopla from the real contribution. If we follow in his footsteps we will serve the ultimate users and the developers who do not need the failed attempts that empty promises bring.

Thanks a lot for your initiative on behalf of Mr. Monderman

Mikel Murga, President
Leber Planificacion e Ingenieria S.A.
48930-Las Arenas, Bizkaia, Spain

Center for Transportation and Logistics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, ISA

From: Bob Castelijn
Sent: Wednesday, July 06, 2005 1:06 PM

Thank you for your e-mail and taking up the opportunity to promote Hans Monderman.

I would like to support you in nominating Hans for his work trying learn to mesh technology with people's needs and aspirations, and not vice versa.

I would like to wish you every success with the nomination.

Bob Castelijn, Associate
Mayer Brown Limited
Woking, Surrey GU22 8AP, UK

From: Carlos F. Pardo
Sent: Wednesday, July 08, 2005 12:13 PM

I fully support Hans Monderman's ideas. Actually, our Video Contest is looking forward to contribute with this kind of information (http://www.sutp.org/newweb/VIDEOTERMS.htm). I think video is the next step to convey messages about sustainable transport clearly, some people actually don't get the idea of traffic jams or the different concepts of sustainable transport by reading something or seeing pictures.

For this purpose, we are developing compilations of videos that we find, in order to integrate them to our training courses. Currently, we've developed a small library for BRT videos (those are the ones that you find the most). Does anybody know of videos on other topics of sustainable transport? It would be good to find permission from their authors and do some sort of website that could promote them. From our side, we will be sure to distribute the winner (and runners up) of the Asia Video Contest among all those interested.

Best regards,

Carlos F. Pardo, Project Coordinator
GTZ Sustainable Urban Transport Project (SUTP)
Transport Division, UN-ESCAP
Bangkok 10200, Thailand
e-mail: carlos.pardo@sutp.org
Website: www.sutp.org

An excellent article indeed! Hans Monderman's work should be carefully studied by the Department for Transport and the ODPM (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, UK), with a view to tackling their key issues of safety, access, congestion and air pollution. Let us hope that the Minister reads the piece!

Posted by Anonymous to The Commons: A day at the office

• Yellie Alkema
  Provincie Drenthe
  9400 AC Assen
  The Netherlands
  
  

• Jorien A. Bakker
  Communicatieadviseur
  Provincie Fryslân
  8900 HM Leeuwarden, Netherlands
• Cezary Bednarski, MSc DipArch RIBA FRSA SARP
  Studio Bednarski ltd
  37@ Pall Mall Deposit, Barlby Road
  London W10 6BL, UK
  
  
• David Engwicht
  Creative Communities International
  7 Fletcher Pde.
  Bardon Queensland 4065 Australia
  
  
• Interface for Cycling Expertise (I-ce)
  Predikherenstraat 17
  3512 TL Utrecht
  The Netherlands
  
  
• Mike Keys
  Feilden Clegg Bradley Architects LLP
  21 Great Titchfield Street
  London W1W 8BA
  
  
• Carlos F. Pardo
  Project Coordinator
  GTZ Sustainable Urban Transport Project (SUTP)
  ESCAP UN Building
  Bangkok 10200, Thailand
  
  
• Stephen Plowden
  Author and transport activist
  Policy Studies Institute
  London, UK.
  
  
• Lee Schipper
  Co-Director, EMBARQ
  World Resources Institute
  Washington DC USA
  
  
• David van der Kellen
  Gemeente Haren
  Raadhuisplein 10
  9751 An Haren (GN)
  Netherlands

• Dave Wetzel
  Vice-Chair, Transport for London
  42-50 Victoria Street
  London. SW1H 0TL. UK