Five young women, known as Team LPSN, work to make streets safer for women
Paula, Lucía A., Sandra, Nuria, and Lucía F. – Secondary school students, and the brains behind “When & Where,” a mobile app that makes streets safer for women.
When & Where is an emergency response app developed by five 16 year-old girls in Spain to help women travel safely. When & Where tracks users’ locations, flagging strange activity – like the user changing course very suddenly, switching their destination, or moving away from their destination rapidly – and alerts a trusted contact or emergency services.
The “why” behind When & Where
A local woman’s assault and death prompted the girls to tackle the issue of violence against women. “We all have felt fear while going home alone at some point in our life, but Laura Luelmo’s murder—which was everywhere in the news in our country—made us realize the seriousness of the problem. This girl went out for a run, her murderer hit her to the ground fatally, and not happy, he took her to a field where he raped her” said Paula.
An estimated 35% of women worldwide experience sexual violence in their lifetimes, according to the World Health Organization. With When & Where, team LSPN is hoping to lower that number by turning the devices many of us carry with us every day into tools for our own protection. Named as 2019 Technovation Girls finalists, the girls continue to pitch their work in their community and beyond, finding markets for a tool that is – sadly – still desperately needed.
Paula, Lucía, Sandra, Nuria, and Lucía turned their fear and anger into action and built something to help girls and women in their country, and around the world, feel safer. Hopefully, their resilience and creativity also inspire you, your family, or your colleagues to join in. So – what problem will you solve?
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