Gender-based violence is one of the most prevalent human rights violations worldwide, with 30% of women experiencing violence from an intimate partner globally. One in five women will become victims of rape or attempted rape in their lifetime. We must work to change attitudes that accept violence against women, especially among young people, through media campaigns and empowering women economically, politically, and over their own fertility. Technology and data visualization can help expose corruption and mismanagement, monitor elections, and flag issues to hold officials accountable. Predictive technologies also make communities safer by identifying patterns to improve transportation, public safety, and more.

1. EndingGenderBasedViolence/Assault
 How can we helpvictimsof gender-basedviolence?Canwe helppreventsuchviolencebeforeit
happens?
o Violence againstwomenandgirlsisone of the mostprevalenthumanrightsviolationsin
the world.It knows nosocial, economicor national boundaries.
o Gender-basedviolence underminesthe health,dignity,securityandautonomyof its
victims,yetitremainsshroudedinaculture of silence.Italsotakesatoll on a global
level,stuntingthe contributionswomen andgirlscanmake to international
development,peace andprogress.
o Last year,the World HealthOrganization(WHO) foundthatamassive 30% of womenin
the worldexperience physical and/orsexual violence fromanintimate partner,with
ratesas highas 66% in central sub-SaharanAfrica,42% in westernsub-SaharanAfrica
and SouthAsia,and35% inNorthernAfricaand the Middle East.The rate of partner
violence dwarfsthe numberof womenwhoexperience sexual assaultfromastranger
(7%).
o One infive women will become avictimof rape or attemptedrape inherlifetime.As
manyas one in three womenhas beenbeaten,coercedintosex orabusedinsome
otherway.
o The annual cost of such violence isestimatedat $8 trillion,whichinturn hasledthe
WHO to conclude thatviolence againstwomenisaglobal healthproblemof epidemic
proportions,requiringurgentaction.
o A large proportionof the populationgrowthinthese high-violence regionswilloccurin
citiesandtowns,puttingpressure onlimitedresources.Youngmen,seasonedbya
culture of violence athome,onthe march to the citieslookingforopportunitiesthat
justaren’tthere will exasperate the problem.Funnelingthispipeline of youngmenof
workingage intoa force for economicgrowthandsocial developmentinthe high-
violence countriesisone of the mostimportantdevelopmentchallengesof the next
decade.
o Our greatesthope of stemmingthe violence liesinreachingyoungpeopleinthe regions
mostaffectedbythisviolence and workingto change rigidgenderattitudes and
dynamics to eliminate the acceptabilityof violence.The attitudesof youngpeople
towardsviolence againstwomen,however,doesn’tseemtobe changingfastenough.
o We needtosimultaneouslyreduce the risksthatmenwill perpetrate violence by
tackling alcohol abuse and work-relatedstress;and that womenwill be victimsof
violence byincreasingwomen’seconomicindependence,control overtheirown
fertilityand access to political power. Unfortunately,womencontinue tofall behind
meninhealth,education,economicandpolitical statusinmanyof the countriesmost
prone to violence.
o We musthostnewconversationsaboutwomen’sempowermentthroughmedia
platformsthattap young,mainstreamvoices,anduse collaborativetechnologiesto
bringtogethertraditionallyopposingsidesandencourage civildialogue. All ofthe
strategiesneedto include young men,so that theyare part of the solution.

2. o The UnitedNationsSecretary-General’sUNiTEcampaign callsonall governments,civil
society,women’sorganizations,men,youngpeople,the privatesector,the mediaand
the entire UN systemto joinforcesinaddressingthisglobal pandemic.
o Launchedin 2008, the UnitedNationsUNiTE to End Violence againstWomen
Campaign aimsto raise publicawarenessandincrease political will andresourcesfor
preventingandendingall formsof violenceagainstwomenandgirlsinall partsof the
world.
o The global visionof the UNiTEcampaignis a worldfree fromviolence againstall women
and girls.Thisvisioncanonlybe realizedthroughmeaningful actionsandongoing
political commitmentsof nationalgovernments,backedbyadequate resources.
o The UnitedNationsPopulationFund (UNFPA) alsosupportsbroadereffortstoaddress
the problem.Forexample,the Fundcollectsdatatoaccuratelydocumentincidentsof
violence,andhelpstodevelop,enforce andreformnational lawsandpolicieson
gender-basedviolence.
 http://endviolence.un.org/about.shtml
 http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/12/03/the-hidden-link-between-women-and-
war.html
 http://www.unfpa.org/gender-based-violence
Ending Online RepressionandCensorship
 Explore howtechnologycanenable peopletoconfrontthreatsinthe face of conflict,instability
and repression
o Iran
 The Iraniangovernmentblockssitesandslowsaccesstothe internettoslowthe
spreadof information.
 Man in the middle attacks: the Iraniangovernmentcreatedafake versionof
the BBC newssite withpro-Iranianstories.AnyonewithinIrantryingtoaccess
the BBC were redirectedtothissite insteadof the actual BBC(oftenwithout
knowingthe difference).
 Fightingin-countryinternetcensorship: proxiesallow userstobypasslocal
serverstoaccess the internetoutsidearepressivecountry.Yet,findinga
reliable andtrustworthyproxycanbe difficult.The rumoristhat the majorityof
the proxiesavailable inIranare fromthe governmentitself.
 Unsurprisingly,the theocraticIranianregime censorspornographicwebsites
mostheavily.Buta highpercentage of sitesin the “art” “society” and “news”
categoriesare also blocked.
 Webtrafficis allowedthroughatfull speed.Trafficthatusesthe encryptedSSH
protocol,whichcan be usedto “tunnel”othertypesof trafficoutof the country,
run at lessthan20% of the network’sfull speed.Trafficthe Iranianfirewall
doesn’trecognize isthrottledevenmore dramatically,andgetscutoff
altogetherafterabout60 seconds.
 EvenunthrottledInternetaccessisextremelyslow.The researchersfindthata
large amountof Iran’strafficpassesthrougha centralizedfacility,where
censorshipfiltersare applied.The governmenthasestablishedanationwide

3. speedlimitof 128 kbpsfor users.That’sabout twice the speedof old-school
dialupmodems,and 50 timesslowerthan a typical connectionin the United
States today.
 The pervasive censorshipinIranhasledmanyIraniansto take
countermeasures.Anti-censorshiptechnologiessuchas Tor, FreeGate,Your
FreedomandUltrasurf are widelyusedinsideIran.
o China
 The Chinese governmenthaslongkepttightreinsonbothtraditional andnew
mediatoavoidpotential subversionof itsauthority.Itstacticsoftenentail strict
mediacontrolsusingmonitoringsystemsandfirewalls,shutteringpublications
or websites,andjailingdissidentjournalists,bloggers,andactivists.Expertssay
the growingChinese demandforinformationistestingthe regime'scontrol.
 More than a dozengovernmentbodiesreviewandenforce lawsrelatedto
informationflow within,into,andfromChina.Censorshipistightenedduring
timesof political transition.
 The Chinese governmentdeploysmyriadwaysof censoringthe Internet.Experts
say itincludestechnical methodslike bandwidththrottling,keywordfiltering,as
well asthe wholesale blockingof accessto websites.The governmentalso
employsadiverse range of methodstoinduce journaliststocensorthemselves.
Such tacticsinclude dismissalsanddemotions,libel lawsuits,fines,arrests,and
the shutteringof newsoutlets.Journalistsandactivistswhooverstep
boundariescanalsoface prison.Althoughforeign mediacan'tbe censored,
international journalistsface governmentintimidation,surveillance,and
restrictionsontheirreporting.
 China'sconstitutionaffordsitscitizensfreedomof speechandpress,butthe
opacityof Chinese mediaregulationsallows authoritiestocrackdownon news
storiesbyclaimingthattheyexpose state secretsandthusendangerthe
country. The definitionofstate secretsin China remainsvague,facilitating
censorshipof any informationthat authoritiesharmful to theirpolitical or
economicinterests.Reportersface harassmentandjail time forviolatingrules,
and are effectivelypressuredinto“self-censorship.”The governmentis
particularlykeenonblockingreportsof issuesthatcouldincite social unrest,like
official corruptionandethnicstrife.
 In May 2010, the governmentemphasizedthe conceptof “internet
sovereignty,”requiringall InternetusersinChina,includingforeign
organizationsandindividuals,toabide byChineselawsandregulations.
 Despite the systematiccontrol of news,the Chinese publichasfoundwaysto
getnewspast censorsthroughproxyserversandvirtual private networks
(VPNs),aswell asthroughmicrobloggingsiteslike Weibothathave become the
primaryspacesfor Chinese netizenstovoice opinionordiscusstaboosubjects.
"Overthe years,ina seriesof cat-and-mousegames,ChineseInternetusers
have developedanextensive seriesof puns—bothvisual andhomophonous—
slang,acronyms,memes,andimagestoskirtrestrictionsandcensors

4.  Some people inChinadon’tlookatfreedomof speechasanabstract ideal,but
more as a meanstoan end.Rather,the fightfor free expressionfitsintoalarger
contextof burgeoningcitizenattentiontoother,more pertinentsocial
campaignslike environmental degradation,social inequalityandcorruption-
issuesforwhichtheyuse the Internetandmediaasa meansof disseminating
information.
 http://jazminhupp.com/google-plans-end-repressive-censorship-2024/
 http://www.cfr.org/china/media-censorship-china/p11515
 http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2013/08/15/heres-how-iran-censors-
the-internet/
Corruption and Vulnerable Populations
ReducingCorruption through the usage of social media
 At a deeperlevel,the use of social media toexpose corruptionandmismanagementmay
encourage civicengagementandultimatelyleadtomore dynamic,demandingsocieties.Atthe
UN's OpenGovernment PartnershipinNew YorkonSeptember20th,2011, attendedbyBarack
Obama andBrazilianpresident WilmaRousseff,Tanzaniancivil campaignerRakeshRajani made
thispoint:"Whencitizenscanmonitorwhat'sgoingon,make comparisonsandact, theygaina
sense of purpose andcontrol;a sense notonly that thingshappentous,but that we can make
thingshappen;afeelingthatwe are part of the narrative of history."
 The cases inwhichsocial mediamaybe a useful tool (orpartof a toolkit) infightingcorruption
and mismanagementare numerous.Forexample:monitoringelections;broadeningaccessto
information;flaggingupissueshiddeninpubliclyavailable data;exposinghumanrights
violations;encouraging political involvement;crowdsourcingthe analysisof national andlocal
governmentfinancestofind irregularities;publicizingaminoritycause;holdinggovernment
officialsaccountable;holdingaidagencies accountable tothe peopletheyclaimtobe helping;
exposingfraudulentbusinesspractices;revealingthe extentof briberyincertaincitiesand
departments;namingandshamingtax evaders
 An online social media campaign shouldlead to offline action,suchas a change inthe law,the
prosecutionof aguiltyparty,or in the mostextreme casesamarch, protest,or revolution.
 Puttingpeople indanger,alienatingyourtargetaudience throughirresponsiblerelease of
sensitiveinformation,andpropagatingfalse informationare all goodwaystocrash and burn in
social mediaandsocial campaigning.
 Trial,improvement,awillingnesstoexperimentandanacceptance of failure are requirements
of anysocial mediastrategy.A recentreportby graduate studentsatthe LondonSchool of
Economicsidentified sixmainareas of technologythat are useful inthe fightagainst
corruption:
o Crowdsourcingandcrowdmapping
o Social networking
o Online communities,e.g. chatroomsandforums
o Blogs
o Mobile technologies:SMS,MMS and smartphone messagingsystems
o Internetcensorshipcircumvention

5.  Many countriessufferingfromendemiccorruptionalsosufferfromchroniclackof internet
infrastructure.Equal AccessInternational notesthat“forpopulationsnotservedbybroadband
InternetandWi-Fi connections,exclusionfromnational dialogueanddebate continues,leaving
manycommunitiesandpeopleoutof the conversationonsocial andpolitical issues.”
o Internet-enabledphonesare the answer; these smartphonesare becomingmore and
more accessible intermsof costand distribution.
 If you wantaction,you can’t stopat an online social mediacampaign.Yourgoal shouldbe
offline actionof some sort.Social change istough to achieve –particularlywhenitinvolves
somethinglikecorruption,sodeeplyingrainedinpolitical andbusinessculture all overthe
world.
Making CommunitiesSafer
 A communitytolerance of highviolencelevelscorrelateswithhigherlevelsof crime, reinforced
by newsandentertainmentmedia.
 In citiesaroundthe globe,technologiesincorporate suchelementsasbigdata and machine
learningto identifypatternsthatgovernmentscanuse tomake predictionsinvariousaspectsof
everydaylife.
 Top 10 wayspredictive technologymakesourcommunitiessafer:
o Transportation
o PublicSafety
o Utilities
o Urban Planning
o Finance
o Human Resources
o CitizenEngagement
o Cybersecurity
o Service Requests
o Sustainability
UsingTechnologyto make saferdrinking water
 Hackathons
o Hack2o bringstogethermakers,tinkerers,andenthusiastswhowanttocreate
innovative solutionstoone of the world’sbiggestproblems:accesstoclean,safe water
o Some of the challengesforthe hackathonincluded:
 Breakingandslowingthe WaterBall brake,one of WaterStep’swater
transportationdevices
 Builda kinetic-poweredWaterBall filter
 Designa bleachmakerusingthe cylindrical casingforWaterStep’sM-100
chlorine generator
 Builda watercarryingbackpack for a 5 gallonbucketbuilt outof local supplies
inthe developingworld
 Designa monitortoconnectto a handpumpin the developingworldthatcan
senda signal to a cell phone whenitstopsworking
 Simple Technologies

6. o Small innovationscan have big impacts
 Every$1 investedin wateryields$4 forthe local economy
 Communitylevel innovations
o The Louisville MetropolitanSewerDistrict(MSD) istryingtobecome more involvedin
the communityandwatercharities.MSD isconnectingtheirengineerstoengineering
studentsinCostaRica to come up witha solutionthatissafe and culturallyappropriate.
By involvingthe community –especiallyengineeringstudents –inthe decision,more
innovative,sustainabledecisionscanbe made.Everybodyneedstobe involvedandon
board.The local government,more peopletobuildtoilets,funding,andnational
governmentstoprioritizesanitation.
 Reframingwaterconservation
o Beingstrategicaboutapproachingwaterconversationiskey.Thoughwe all knowwater
access iscritical,mostpeople don’tunderstandthe critical situationswe’reinwiththis
preciousresource.We needtorethinkhow we use water,whetherwe live inanarea
that has an abundantsupplyorwe live where waterisscarce.
o Role techplaysinreframingwaterconservation:
 Specific,high-techlensesandGoProcameraswere usedto share imagesand
videoforoceanographicexplorerFabienCousteau’sMission31 to spreadthe
wordabout the importance of the underwaterworld
 Educatinginschoolsaroundthe worldstartingat a young age,and puttingit
intoa global contextusingthe internet
 Buildingcheaptoiletsandwaterpurifierstogive developingcountriesaccessto
cleanwaterand toilets
 Smartphone appsandsmart irrigationsystemstomonitorandanalyze personal
waterusage in developednations
o Combiningtechnological advancementsof waterconservationandaccesswiththe
emotional attachmentwe have towateriskey
 http://www.academia.edu/1030432/Revealing_the_Rot_How_to_use_social_media_to_expose
_corruption_and_mismanagement_at_both_local_and_national_levels
 http://www.govtech.com/photos/Top-10-Uses-of-Predictive-Technology-Making-Our-
Communities-Safer.html
 http://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-tech-is-making-the-worlds-water-safer/
Data Visualization
 Why isit important?
o Visualizationshelppeoplesee thingsthatwere notobvioustothembefore
o Visualizationsconveyinformationinauniversal mannerand make itsimple toshare
ideaswithothers
o Data visualizationpresentsdataina waythat can be easilyinterpreted,savingtimeand
energy
o Data visualizationisbecomingincreasinglyvaluable aswe progressevenfurtherinto
beinganinformationsociety

7.  It simplifiesacomplex problemusingdesignthiscapturesandholdsthe
viewer’sattention
o By takingdata and turningitintovisual content,usersare more likelytoengage with
and share it
o The tricky part isto communicate these vast swathes ofdata in an accessible and
digestible way
o Interactive chartsandgraphs make iteasierto:
 Identifyareasthatneedattentionorimprovement
 Understandwhatfactors influence yourcustomers’behavior
 Knowwhichproductsto place where
 Predictsalesvolumes
 Discoverhowto increase revenuesorreduce expenses
o Important things to rememberwith data visualization:
 Understandthe data youare tryingto visualize,includingitssize and
uniqueness
 Determine whatyouare tryingto visualizeandwhatkindof information you
wantto communicate
 Knowyouraudience andunderstandhow itprocessesvisual information
 Use a visual thatconveysthe informationin the bestandsimplestformforyour
audience
 Big data bringsnew challengesbecause large volumes,differentvarietiesand
varyingvelocitiesmustbe takenintoaccount
 In manycasesdata is beinggeneratedfasterthanitcan be digested
 Data is oftenmeaninglesswithoutcontext
 Visual representationof dataoffersaudiencesimportantcontextfor
understandingthe informationpresentedtothem
 Not all visualizationsare helpful!
 Theycan be confusingandmisleading
 The most importantaspectsof data visualizationsare beingaccurate,
easyto understand,andcontextappropriate
 The bestdata visualizationsare onesthatexpose somethingnew aboutthe
underlyingpatternsandrelationshipscontainedwithinthe data
 As bigdata becomesbigger,andmore companiesdeal withcomplexdatasets
withdozensof variables,datavisualizationwill becomeevermore important
 It isimportantto know where the datacame fromunderstandingthe dataand
itsoriginsgivesone abettersense of authorityandconfidence whendetailing
the numbers
 http://www.sas.com/en_us/insights/big-data/data-visualization.html
 http://bridgeable.com/the-importance-of-data-visualization/
 http://radar.oreilly.com/2012/02/why-data-visualization-matters.html