Building knowledge

Take Back The Tech! starts today on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

To mark the event, we are launching our online mapping platform on technology-related violence against women.

Stories can change the world. Yet there are many stories that remain untold because there is no name for them, because of shame, and because they lay hidden beneath everyday acceptance. These are stories of violence that women and girls face all over the world.

But the world is changing. We are increasingly networked, and this connection has created immense possibilities to share unheard realities, to organise and come together for collective action, to shape and define a world that is more equal, inclusive of diversity, and that does not tolerate discrimination.

Despite the prevalence of violence against women, we've come to live with it as a normal part of everyday life. Especially since violence against women is often perpetrated by people known to the survivors, many of us tend to ignore the fact that someone we know is being abused or violated. We are nervous about being accused of intruding into someone's private life. Or that it is none of our business.

We only look for help when we need it. But sometimes, it's useful to know what are the points of support and help near you that you can get in touch with for different reasons. One, because we always imagine violence to be someone else's reality until it happens to us. Second, it's good to be able to help another person when they turn to us for help. And importantly, we can also get in touch to grow the activism and volunteer our time and energy in supporting their work.

Radio remains as one of the most accessible and affordable information channel in the world. You don't need to know how to read to understand what is broadcasted, and you can listen to it while doing other things. Considering the fact that there are 796 million adults worldwide who are unable to read and write, and out of which, roughly two-thirds of them (64%) are made up of women, radio can be a very powerful and valuable channel for information.

There are countless amounts of information and resources online. Everyday, more and more are being added and shared not just by people with access to book publishers or production companies, but by ordinary users who simply  have internet connectivity. Current developments in internet applications, tools and services also strive to make it easier for people to publish, upload and share content, and to connect between different types of spaces, tools and devices.

How do images and representation of women and men affect violence against women? Yesterday, we invited you to explore the spaces you occupy and move around daily with your camera, questions and a critical eye. Today, make the connections between what you experienced and saw with the incidences of violence against women that take place where you are.

Join the dots. Draw connections between images and representation, the dissemination of gendered norms and values and how they impact on the reality of violence against women. Make a slideshow documentary.

We are constantly surrounded by billboards, advertisements and messages that tell us about how women and men should be: what we should aspire to, the bodies we should have, the roles we are meant to play at work, in politics, at home and in relationships, the desires we are wanting, and more. They shape the environment and spaces we inhabit, and contribute to the construction of norms and stereotypes around gender and sexuality. These reinforce unequal power relations between women and men, which in turn contribute to the perpetuation of violence against women.

There are increasing reports of women and girls who are subjected to harassment and cyberstalking through the use of technology. Harassment and cyberstalking can take many forms. For example, receiving repeated harassing and threatening messages online and through SMS.  Or the harasser pretending to be the victim, and posting sexualised messages on websites, forums or to her contact list. Sometimes this is accompanied by her real name, phone number and sometimes even home address, moving the harassment from online to the material world.

Only a handful of corporations and conglomerates own most of the world's media, which puts into question how much editors and journalists are able to juggle the responsibility of serving the general public while increasing sales and protecting the interests of the head company.