The 1st Global Convening on Informal and Shared Mobility (GloCon) will explore new ways to recognize, support, and improve informal and shared mobility (ISM) systems; to build a future where cities, towns and rural areas invest in and integrate ISM; where ISM expands access to jobs, economic opportunities, and social services; where municipal, national, and regional governments recognize ISM operators and workers as partners; where philanthropic and public sector initiatives leverage ISM’s innovative, grassroots can-do culture as catalyst for sustainable development, decarbonization, and social justice.
GloCon is co-organized by the Center for Sustainable Urban Development at the Columbia Climate School, the Global Network for Popular Transportation (GNPT), the Partnership for Research in Informal and Shared Mobility (PRISM), the Shared-Use Mobility Center, and World Resources Institute - Ross Center for Cities (WRI-Ross Center), with support from the Eastern Asia Society for Transportation Studies (EASTS) , the Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers (SPARC) , and the TRUFI Association.
This convening is a key component of the International Research Program (IRP) under VREF's Informal and Shared Mobility initiative (ISM). The IRP is led by PRISM, a growing global consortium that includes transport and urban research centers in Columbia University, Chulalongkorn University, Universidad los Andes, University of Cape Town, Chulalongkorn University, University College London, University of Manchester, and the University of Ghana. PRISM also includes the Society for the Promotion of Area Resources (SPARC) in India, Centro Para la Sostenibilidad Urbana (CPSU) in Costa Rica, WRI China, along with GNPT, SUMC, and WRI-Ross Cities.
Shared Knowledge
GloCon unites 400+ researchers, public officials, practitioners, workers, and operators to build rigorous, field-wide and interdisciplinary understanding of Informal and Shared Mobility, with a particular focus on knowledge from and for the Global South for the first time ever.
Shared Movement
GloCon is a rare space where labor, government, research, and community voices in popular transportation are equally at the table, working together toward people-centered mobility systems.
Shared Transformation
GloCon is not just a conference but a catalyst for lasting systems change. One that is fair and inclusive, where workers and small operators help shape the future of mobility rather than simply inherit it.
BANGKOK, THAILAND
OCTOBER 26-28, 2026
Learn more here.
