Amend Win First World Resources Institute Ross Prize

Congratulations to Amend for winning the inaugural World Resources Institute (WRI) Ross Prize for Cities, a $250,000 award focusing on urban transformation for its School Area Road Safety Assessments and Improvements (SARSAI) program, which  was chosen from among 200 applicants by a world-class jury of experts. 

WRI is a global research organization that spans more than 60 countries. Its mission is to “turn big ideas into action at the nexus of environment, economic opportunity, and human well-being.” The WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities focuses that mission on urban resilience and fostering safe, equitable, healthy cities. The WRI Ross Prize for Cities was created “to elevate examples of urban transformation around the world and inspire others to learn from these changes.” It is sponsored by business leader and philanthropist Stephen M. Ross, chairman and founder of Related Companies and a WRI Board Director.

Amend’s SARSAI program is focused on reducing injuries around school areas in urban Africa where children are known anecdotally to be at very high risk of RTI. SARSAI involves the systematic assessment of areas around schools, identification of measures to improve road safety, and the implementation of those measures. This work includes:

• Identification of schools at which children are at high risk of road traffic injury
• A standardized assessment of school areas that looks at the behavior of children, behavior of drivers and other road users, and physical infrastructure
• Government and community engagement
• Identifying appropriate measures to improve safety, based on the assessment
• Implementation of measures, including infrastructure improvements (speed bumps, bollards, sidewalks, signage, new school gates, etc.), crossing patrols, and community and school road safety education
• Monitoring and evaluation.