Red Dot Foundation is a United Nations ECOSOC-accredited non-profit that works on gender equity, safety and justice. Safecity, its flagship program is a mobile and web platform that crowdsources personal stories of sexual harassment and abuse in public spaces. Safecity data, which can be anonymous, gets aggregated as hot spots on a map indicating trends at a local level. The strategy is to make this data useful for individuals, communities, and local governments to identify factors that lead to violence and to improve public safety. Red Dot Foundation aims to make cities safer by encouraging equal access to public and private spaces for everyone, especially women and girls, through the use of education, advocacy, crowdsourced data, community engagement and institutional accountability.
Crowdsourced Data Collection
We collect data on incidents of sexual harassment and violence through crowd-sourced mapping. This data is used to identify trends, hotspots, and areas that require attention.
Mapping and Visualization
Utilizing the data collected, we create maps and visualizations to highlight areas with higher incidences of sexual harassment.
Community Engagement
We actively engage with communities, conducting awareness campaigns and workshops to educate people about sexual harassment, consent, and safety measures.
On 7th May, at the Cartier Women’s Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, ElsaMarie D’Silva, Founder of Red Dot Foundation, hosted a powerful and participatory session that brought together 40 individuals of all genders and ages in a collective conversation on safety, gender-based violence, and civic engagement. Held in the beautifully designed Pavilion—an architectural and artistic collaboration between Yuko Nagayama and Es Devlin—the setting itself invited deep reflection and courageous exchange. Elsa presented Safecity as a civic tech platform that leverages crowdsourced data to make public spaces safer. With seamless simultaneous translation by Mizuka Koh, she shared case studies from India and beyond to illustrate how anonymous reporting of sexual and gender-based violence can inform policy and spark meaningful change.
Fumie Saito of JOICFP highlighted Japan’s contributions to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) initiatives in Africa and Asia, prompting attendees to question why similar investments weren’t being made domestically. This sparked a thoughtful dialogue on the importance of addressing both local and global needs, recognizing that the two are not mutually exclusive. There was notable interest in adapting Safecity in Japan, with participants inquiring about how the platform could be accessed or localized. This led to a broader discussion about government responsiveness, the willingness to acknowledge and address gender-based violence, and how data can act as a bridge between citizens and institutions. The two-hour session closed with a shared understanding: technology alone is not enough. True transformation requires a holistic approach—one that includes education, investment in community-driven solutions, and cross-sector partnerships.
Media Features
| Leading with Purpose: Red Dot Foundation Elected Chair of UN NGO Committee for Social Development We are proud to share that Red Dot Foundation has been elected to chair the NGO Committee for Social Development for the 2025–2027 term. As a key body operating under the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations (CoNGO), the committee advocates for people-centered development grounded in the Copenhagen Declaration. Guided by the UN’s Commission for Social Development (CSocD), it plays a critical role in shaping global policies on poverty eradication, social inclusion, and full employment. Under the leadership of Gillian D’Souza, Director Partnerships & Liaison at the United Nations for Red Dot Foundation, this new chapter promises to strengthen collaboration between civil society and member states to ensure that international commitments translate into lasting, inclusive change. | | --- | | Read More |
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