more than a cyclist Kalamazoo
In 2024, we were approached by Dr. Amelia Katanski to collaborate with Wheels of Change, a course at Kalamazoo College that explores cycling through the lens of social and environmental justice. ModeShift Kalamazoo joined the team as the campaign’s primary communications partner and More Than A Cyclist Kalamazoo was launched.
Amelia first encountered the More Than a Cyclist movement when she spent time in Wollongong, NSW, as a Fulbright Scholar, where she connected with our Australian partners. Inspired by the message of humanising people who ride bikes, she saw its potential to spark meaningful change in her hometown of Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Despite Kalamazoo’s vibrant cycling scene and growing infrastructure, the city faced a sobering reality: in 2024, it recorded the highest number of fatal bike-car collisions of any county in Michigan (Michigan State Police 2024 Statewide Traffic Crash Data Year-End Report). This stark statistic underscored the urgency of the campaign and the need to shift public perception, promote empathy, and advocate for safer streets.
More Than A Cyclist Kalamazoo is now helping to amplify local voices, build community, and challenge stereotypes—reminding everyone that behind every set of handlebars is a human being with a story worth seeing.
“The More Than a Cyclist poster in Wollongong immediately caught my eye, and I thought we need something like this at home to disarm polarized debates about bike infrastructure, because at the end of the day, we all want the people we love to come home safely”
— Dr. Amelia Katanski
The Wheels of Change class of 2024 worked closely with a number of partners including the City of Kalamazoo, ModeShift Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo College Center for Civic Engagement, Kalamazoo College Center for New Media Design, Monica Harmsen, and Lawrence Productions to produce images using the More Than A Cyclist “duality imagery”. They choose people from their local community to feature in this social media campaign.
2024/25 Campaign
