There was a real sense of excitement at the official launch of Dropbox’s support of Dublin Cycling Campaign on Thursday 23rd of January. Over 100 invitees attended the event in Dropbox’s Hatch Street European HQ - mainly senior level representatives from many of the largest tech companies in Ireland. The consensus in the room was that Dublin is ripe to become a seriously cycle-friendly city, but it needs leadership and - crucially - a stepping up of the cycle campaigning work led by Dublin Cycling Campaign.

Paulo Rodriguez, Dropbox’s Director of Solutions for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, set the scene for the evening stressing that Dropbox understood the importance of making cities and towns bicycle-friendly, and that the company was delighted to partner with the Campaign. This was followed by Dr. Sabina Brennan from Trinity College Dublin who gave us a whirlwind introduction to brain science and insights into how important life-style factors are in keeping the brain young and sharp. Everyday physical activity has a crucial role and regular cycle commuting fits the bill perfectly here.

Speaking on behalf of Dublin Cycling Campaign and Cyclist.ie and An Taisce, Dr. Damien Ó Tuama set out how cycle campaigning in Dublin is part of both a national and global movement, and the work of advocates in Dublin over the last 25+ years has pushed cycling up the political agenda and secured many important wins. However, with the support of the business community, cycling advocacy can have a much bigger impact on making the capital far safer and more liveable.

Key-note speaker Klaus Bondam, CEO of the Danish Cyclists’ Federation, provided some delightful insights into Danish cycling culture and normality of seeing families and children cycling to school right in the heart of Copenhagen. The collaboration between the Confederation of Danish Industry and the Danish Cyclists’ Federation is a particularly important part of the institutional jigsaw underpinning the advancement of cycling policies in Denmark - an example of how we might make progress ourselves at home here. He also stressed that a new generation of cyclists and travellers will understand that in the future, travelling from A to B will involve different modes of transport - multi- and inter-modality - hence the importance of properly integrating rail and cycling.

Perhaps the most encouraging part of the evening was hearing the many statements of support from company representatives that cycle campaigning is a crucial activity to help us transform our city - and ensure that both employees and residents can go about their daily mobile lives safely and securely. A sincere thanks again to Dropbox for hosting a wonderful evening and stimulating a new trajectory for cycle campaigning in Ireland.

If the company you work for might consider supporting Dublin Cycling Campaign’s advocacy work to make the capital a safe and attractive place for cycling for all ages and abilities, we would love to hear from you!

Please check out our Business / Organisation Membership scheme here and email our Membership Officer, Eugene Doran at membership@dublincycling.ie for further details.

Dublin Cycling Campaign / Cyclist.ie is a registered charity (RCN 20102029) and donations are eligible for tax relief.