1. Insert the title of your presentation here Presented by Name Here Job Title - Date Social networking sites as a means to encourage sustainable mobility Presented by Rebecca Hutchins - October 2012

2. Page  2 Agenda Background Method Results Conclusions and recommendations 1 2 3 4

3. Background Page  3  ONS (2011) 77% of the population is ‘online’  A quarter of time spent on the internet is now on social networking sites  A third of 18 to 24 year olds now obtain news via Facebook  40% of companies are now using social networking sites for marketing  40% of people used social media to decide where to take holidays  Evidence from behavioural research that social networking can target motivational ‘triggers’, affecting attitudes, values and behaviour  Research question: “Can social networking sites encourage low carbon travel behaviours?”

4. Page  4 Method The study employed both qualitative and quantitative approaches and comprised 4 research activities: 1.A scoping review 2.Interviews with the owners of social networking sites identified in the scoping review 3.Three focus groups 4.An online survey to validate the findings of the focus groups

5. Results Page  5  Scoping review – No evaluations of the potential for SNS to change travel behaviours. Little evidence of research into effectiveness of SNS  Interviews with site owners – SNS are an effective way to engage with individuals  Felt that their pages had contributed to changes in travel behaviour

6. Results continued Page  6  Focus Groups - Participants believed that SNS could act as a platform to spread information and raise awareness about low carbon travel behaviours  People were more likely to be influenced by information that they receive via personal networks than via formal networks.  To change behaviour, SNS need to be marketed to the individual rather than the environment  Online survey - more people either ‘disagreed’ or ‘strongly disagreed’ that social networking sites could change their own travel behaviours

7. Conclusions Page  7 SNS - are a good way of communicating messages to a broad demographic. SNS are likely to play an important role in raising awareness of the impact of current behaviour, the benefits of changing behaviour and the type of behaviour that could be adopted. A SNS designed to encourage low carbon behaviours could stimulate thinking about sustainable mobility.

8. Conclusions Page  8 Ways in which SNS can be made more effective in encouraging low carbon behaviours include:  Exploiting the ‘social’ aspects of SNS  Communicate wider benefits of low carbon behaviour  Regularly update the content of SNS  Convey professional credibility  Encourage active participation

9. Page  9 Do You Have Any Questions?

10. Page  10 Thank you! Research conducted by Rebecca Hutchins 23 rd October 2012 Tel: +44 1344 770318 Email: rhutchins@trl.co.uk