The Soldiers for Sisters Movement
Changing the perception of men as the adversary by co-opting the good ones to rally and raise their voice for the cause. Using big brands and existing social/community groups to multiply the reach for the cause..
Profile
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Associate (Corporate Social Innovation)
WATATAWA
"Believes in the power of business to create sustainable social change without compromising on economic returns"
Lives in Singapore, comes from India. Work baggage includes doing strategy development for the Singapore government (EDB) and building a data collection platform for half-year with an inspiring awesome team at Ashoka - India. Currently a consultant (who loves what he does) working with companies to create social business strategies which put social and business returns at the core of the company's growth.
Research
203pt
Idea
510pt
Evaluation
3pt
Collaboration
288pt
Total
1,004pt
Changing the perception of men as the adversary by co-opting the good ones to rally and raise their voice for the cause. Using big brands and existing social/community groups to multiply the reach for the cause..
Using everyday FMCG products which men buy to subtly change their attitude towards women in areas of high violence..
Harness the power of peer pressure amongst the youth to make respect/protection for women the "cool - right thing to do" rather than trying to be preachy!
Great idea, but is there a way to i)Scale it to reach much more people and ii) Find a way to leave a more lasting impact ? Can the insights, gleams of connection between the stranger and the ActionHero be captured for permanence in the same places where the conversation happened? Could be something as simple as working with the strangers to light up those alleys, leaving behind the sentences which changed their outlook/struck an emotional chord on the nearby walls or pictures (anonymised) of the conversations happening... As for the scaling up part, trying to mark specific days for this specifically sounds like a great idea..How about an accompanying facebook/twitter campaign too? If you could find 1 strong private sector partner (e.g.: Nikon/Canon as official photo partner) you can really give the campaign wings!
Good luck!
Apiya,
Great initiative, idea and really wish you the best in achieving it. Would like to raise a couple of suggestions:
1) Find the right incentive and test it: The value for women to use this service is clear, but what's the value for the safe,reliable boda boca drivers like Medad? One option could be for these drivers to command a small premium (5-10% higher than market fares) for providing safe, reliable transport. It would help convert younger members (with Medad's mentorship) to better role models.
2) Form partnerships: Are there active local NGOs or civic minded governmental agencies (police?) who might be willing to help? If so, partnering with them can give you much bigger resources than possible by yourself (e.g.: A tech company could give sirens, video cameras, etc which would deter attackers, police could give approval to put police emblem on the vehicles as a sign of support)
3) Can we form a partnership with women (through a local NGO) to start a Women-only Boda Boda service ? There is an example in India - http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2013/08/20/women-at-work-delhis-all-female-taxi-company/ which you may find inspiring.
Wishing you the best!
Sandiip commented on Let's raise boys and men to end violence and discrimination against women and girls. (Updated on May 26)