ECF's member organisation Federazione Italiana Amici della Bicicletta (Federation of Friends of the Bicycle in Italy, FIAB) gave Pope Francis their first membership card for 2016 during an audience in Rome on Wednesday 30 September.

Pope Francis accepted it with a smile in the name of their common affection for bicycles. FIAB's President Giulietta Pagliaccio also gave the Bishop of Rome a personal letter from ECF's President Manfred Neun, as well as his personal greetings. FIAB represents more than 140 associations of cyclists in Italy with about 20,000 members. Thanks to the work of volunteers FIAB has been promoting for over 25 years the use of the bicycle as a daily mean of transport, for tourism and for leisure.

The aim of FIAB, as stated in its statutes is "the development of activities for the preservation and enhancement of nature and the environment in the framework of sustainable mobility policies". The pope's ‘Encyclical Letter' on the preservation of our earth encouraged FIAB to continue their activities towards a change in lifestyle of our society. The 'Encyclical Letter" says: «The quality of life in cities has much to do with systems of transport, which are often a source of much suffering for those who use them. Many cars, used by one or more people, circulate in cities, causing traffic congestion, raising the level of pollution, and consuming enormous quantities of non-renewable energy. This makes it necessary to build more roads and parking areas which spoil the urban landscape. Many specialists agree on the need to give priority to public transportation. Yet some measures needed will not prove easily acceptable to society unless substantial improvements are made in the systems themselves, which in many cities force people to put up with undignified conditions due to crowding, inconvenience, infrequent service and lack of safety.»

For many of the environmental problems quoted in the pope’s ‘Encyclical Letter’ the solution is certainly the use of the bicycle, a just and intelligent way of moving in our cities. The bicycle is democratic because it is accessible to all; it's economic because it doesn't consume precious natural resources; it doesn't occupy much space and allows users to do a healthy daily physical exercise; it facilitates direct contact with people and helps to socialize; it's amusing and in a way makes us all come back to being children again.