The world of goods and passenger transport is going through a phase of profound change, driven by a mix of technological innovation, cultural transformation and a growing awareness of its environmental impact. These trends, which are shaping the ways in which goods are shipped and people are moving, will find a point of convergence in the second week of May at Fiera Milano thanks to the simultaneous presence of Transpotec Logitec, Italy's leading event for road transport and logistics, and NME-Next Mobility Exhibition, an event dedicated to means, solutions, policies and technologies for a sustainable system of collective mobility. The two events are separate, but they share interesting points of contact, such as, first and foremost, a new sensitivity towards the environment that invites a joint effort.

This is a truly challenging target if we consider that the sector is responsible for 24% of all direct CO₂ emissions, that is, 8 billion tonnes of total emissions (Source: United Nations. Sustainable transport, sustainable development. Interagency report for second Global Sustainable Transport Conference 2021) and that in order to reach the European Community's targets of Zero Net Emissions by 2050, transport emissions would have to decrease by more than 3% per year by 2030.

Certainly, some factors are crucial in the path towards change. There is technology, which, on the one hand, supports the search for alternative engines and innovates logistics by making the processes more efficient and, on the other hand, through the analysis of big data, makes it possible to optimise transport and minimise its environmental impact.

But what is really needed to overcome the current system is a paradigm shift that is summed up in the ASI strategy , an acronym that represents the three approaches to making mobility sustainable: Avoid, Shift and Improve. In fact, the aim is to avoid or at least reduce the need to travel, shortening the distances between residences and places of work and leisure, or between the production and consumption sites for goods so as to reduce travel distances (especially by car, plane and ship). We then talk about the modal shift, which means making the movement of goods more intermodal and public transport for people more reliable and therefore more appealing. Finally, we are looking to improve engines, making them increasingly efficient and less polluting.

From 8 to 11 May at Fiera Milano, these approaches will take concrete form in the 500 companies from more than 20 countries set to participate in Transpotec Logitec and NME and, by telling the stories of their innovation, they will help to spread the change of perspective and awareness that the sector needs in order to evolve.