Wearable tech to enhance safety for women

To help women combat harassment and easily alert emergency contacts when they face threats to their personal safety, JWT Singapore, in support of the Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE), has launched the Guardian Angel personal safety accessory line.Designed in the shape of a halo, The Guardian Angel is a simple but elegant innovation which can be worn as a necklace or a bracelet, so that it’s always accessible.Here is what it looks like:[gallery link="file" ids="47213,47212"]By clicking once on their Guardian Angel pendant, a woman can trigger a call to her own phone during an uncomfortable moment, offering her an excuse to break away from a harasser in a shared space such as an office or a bar.In cases of threat to her personal safety, she can hold the button for three seconds to send an SOS text message to a designated number, such as her parents or a friend, to notify them she is in danger.The text message provides coordinates and a Google Map link to her location.The inspiration to develop this innovative accessory, came from JWT’s discussions with AWARE, a Singapore-based advocacy organisation that works to promote gender equality, including through providing counselling and services to women.“AWARE believes in the rights of women to participate in social and public spaces free from harassment and violence,” Corinna Lim, executive director at AWARE, said.“But especially in a workplace or social scenario, there can be social penalties for confronting harassers directly. The Guardian Angel can help to defuse some harassment situations. The emergency contact function also empowers women to more easily seek help in cases of serious threat.”“With today’s technology, nothing is impossible unless you try. As a woman, I felt we had to give our best to not just raise awareness about the issue but to try to stop it,” said Valerie Cheng, chief creative officer of JWT Singapore.Sexual assault is high on the agenda of governments worldwide: Singapore recently passed an anti-harassment law to augment existing legislation and US President Barrack Obama in January established the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault.Although the Guardian Angel was designed in Singapore, it can be used anywhere in the world. The Guardian Angel’s simple text message functionality also makes it accessible to anyone, regardless of what kind of phone their designated contacts have. It doesn’t require the recipient to download an app, or own a smartphone.The Guardian Angel, which was conceived by JWT Singapore, is sold online by Singaporean retailer My Room Retail at www.the-guardianangel.com and 10% of each sale of the Guardian Angel will go to AWARE.“This a generous and wonderful contribution, which will help us to continue to provide counselling and other services to many other women in need,” said Corinna Lim at AWARE.“A tool like the Guardian Angel could help any number of girls and women, all over the world,” said Frank Bauer, CEO of JWT Singapore. “This is a wonderful example of innovation that makes a real difference.”