Helping the world travel more easily and sustainably

This article is part of our Women and Leadership special report to coincide with global events in March celebrating the achievements of women. This conversation has been edited and condensed.

Sheila Watson sees her upbringing in a working-class community as the foundation of her desire to create change, and the study of economics and politics as essential tools to achieve this. As an economist and policy advisor in the UK Labor government from the late 1990s, she sought to tackle injustice. Now as deputy director of the FIA Foundationa London-based non-profit organization, leads its environmental, gender and research initiatives and works around the world to support safe and sustainable mobility.

What is the purpose of the foundation?

The overarching mission is safe, clean, fair and green mobility. The focus is on personal mobility, but it concerns all dimensions of sustainability, from climate and clean air to road safety, accessibility and fairness. We like to link our work to advocacy.

What is the scope of the work?

It’s global. We’re a philanthropy, so we give money and support to partner organizations in areas where we think we can add value, and that’s often in areas where other people aren’t focused enough. It can be as broad as looking at which 197 countries to promote non-motorized, zero-emission modes of transport, such as walking and cycling, or on the ground in one place, such as supporting infrastructure changes around schools in Africa, such as painting a new zebra crossing or creating a protected walkway, to make the roads safer for children. It is a long-held belief of mine, probably based on the fact that I have lobbied government for a long time, that it is important that when you advocate for change, you show how it can be done.

Why is that work necessary?

Mobility and transport are responsible for about a quarter of emissions, and motorization is expected to triple globally by 2050. Air quality is a major problem in cities, and the number of traffic accidents is critically high in many parts of the world. the biggest cause of death for young people worldwide. We want to provide opportunities for people to get by and thrive, but we have to address those negative things.

Are there any notable challenges?

It can be difficult to do work where data does not exist or is poorly preserved. You cannot make good policy with bad data. Through our projects we support initiatives that stimulate good data collection The Real Urban Emissions Initiative (TRUE) which uses real-world emissions data to encourage clean vehicle adoption, and the Global fuel saving initiative (GFEI), which supports the development of fuel economy policies around the world and includes a program focused on vehicle electrification. The goal is to share information so that everyone works with the same figures and can develop effective policies.

How did your early years shape your career path?

I grew up in the North East of England, very working class, very economically deprived, in what in America would be public housing. I was a smart kid at school. I thought you could know so much and I wanted to know as much as possible. I liked the idea of ​​economics. I saw it as an explanation, beyond politics, of how the world worked. I followed those subjects until university. I went from what you would call a public school to Oxford.

We had a very political household, so honesty just runs through us. I didn’t know what the injustices were, but I knew I desperately wanted to right some of them. I knew that understanding economics and politics was how you created change.

Did you have role models?

I had some great teachers and I was a crazy reader. I was inspired by the people in the books I read, namely Kate in Shakespeare’s ‘Taming of The Shrew’. I loved the way she fought against what was expected of her at every opportunity. The senior politician I worked for was a woman who taught me a lot about what it is to be professional in the workplace, about getting things done, making and sticking to decisions, and using facts and evidence while carries a moral compass with you. honesty. And I was raised by a mother and father who told me I couldn’t do anything.

Was being a woman ever a barrier?

I never thought that being a girl made me different. I think I came a pretty long way before I started thinking that my gender played a role. I think it dawns on you that there are people who see you as a woman before they see you as anything else. It makes hard work harder.

What motivates you?

They are without a doubt the partners I work with. And it’s the fact that real progress has been made. London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who has been leading on air quality, was re-elected after introducing a low-emissions zone, and Mayor Anne Hidalgo was re-elected after restricting vehicle access to central Paris. This actually shows that we may be moving from words to actions. We are at a pivotal moment and the window is closing, and it is up to us to make change.