27/10/2022 News

120,000 young people from 22 countries took part in the 1st edition of the VIA Creative contest

The VIA program was kicked off by the TotalEnergies and Michelin Foundations in 2019, to raise awareness among young people and educate them in road safety issues through participative learning techniques. It has now been deployed in 35 countries for almost 300,000 students. In this context, the international VIA Creative contest aims to enable young people to express their ideas for safer mobility, and to share them in their respective countries.

Students from Les Practiciens de Pikine school in Senegal

The theme for the first edition of the VIA Creative contest was: “Walking to school safely.” Road accidents are currently the leading cause of death among young people worldwide. Pedestrians are the victims of two out of every five accidents, that often occur on the way to school.

120,000 young people from 22 countries¹ took part in the first edition. What did their assignment consist of? With their school or association, they had to create a poster to raise awareness of road safety and encourage changes in behavior on the road.

At their national finals, each country chose the group that would represent it in the international competition. In the semi-finals, five groups were shortlisted to take part in the finals by a jury comprising local managers from TotalEnergies, partner NGOs, representatives from the TotalEnergies Foundation and from external bodies. The final jury, presided by Jacques-Emmanuel Saulnier, Vice President Public Interest and General Manager of the TotalEnergies Foundation, selected the project of five students from Les Practiciens de Pikine school in Senegal. They will be invited to Paris in spring 2023.

VIA Creative gives young people the opportunity to think about the risks they might face, and to become proactive as regards their own safety, and ambassadors for their peers. To support the creation of this contest, an initiative of the TotalEnergies Corporate Foundation, employees in our affiliates in eight countries volunteered their time through the Action ! program. As a major player in road activities, the Company has made safety a priority. That’s why it has promised to contribute to the United Nations' goal of halving the number of deaths and injuries related to road accidents by 2030.

Learn more about the VIA Creative contest

¹ France, Cameroon, India, Malaysia, Brazil, Egypt, Lebanon, Angola, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, La Réunion, Madagascar, Malawi, Morocco, Mauritania, Dominican Republic, Senegal, Tanzania, Togo.

Winning poster – Senegal

The final jury members were:

Jean Todt, Special Envoy of the United Nations General Secretary for road safety.
Stefania Giannini, UNESCO Assistant Director General for education.
Patrick Weil, President of Bibliothèques Sans Frontières.
Manoelle Lepoutre, President of L'Industreet.
Gervais Pellissier, Delegate CEO, and People & Transformation Director at Orange.
Nicolas Beaumont, Senior VP Sustainable Development and Mobility at Michelin.

Semi-finalists’ posters