When I lost a friend and mentor in a bike crash, I realized that designing a helmet that people would actually want to wear could help save lives – literally. I dedicated myself to doing just that, and Thousand was born. The company's name served as a daily reminder of our initial goal – to help save 1000 lives that would have otherwise been lost in bike crashes.

Nearly 10 years later, we've not just reached that goal but surpassed it. We are honored to have been part of the reason why over 1000 members of our community are still here today with their loved ones.

But as we learned more about all the factors that affect pedestrian and cyclist safety in cities, we realized that individual actions would only take us part of the way there. Encouraging more riders to wear helmets is only a part of creating safe streets and car-free cities. So as Thousand has grown, so has the scope of our mission – and while we will always empower more people to wear helmets, we also want to play a part in advocating for more mobility infrastructure; cyclist- and pedestrian-centric policies; and welcoming community spaces.

As a mission driven company, we've taken steps toward this goal by partnering with community organizations to expand access to bikes and safer urban mobility. But there's still so much more to be done – through advocacy, organization, individual action, and more.

We hope these stories of real lives saved inspire you to not only wear a helmet when you ride but also to join us as we continue to advocate for safer streets, better cities, and fewer cars.

– GLORIA HWANG