CPWO Research Seminar
Understanding and Addressing Online Harms Against Women and Girls through Research
Online spaces play a huge role in our everyday lives, offering connection, creativity, and community. Yet for many women and girls, these spaces can also bring real risks and harm. These Research Seminars open up a shared conversation about how research can help us understand these experiences and find practical ways to make digital spaces safer and more inclusive. Bringing together researchers, students, practitioners, and members of the wider community, the event is an opportunity to learn from one another, share insights, and explore how we can work collectively to create lasting change.
We are delighted to welcome ElsaMarie D’Silva to lead this Research Seminar. Further details about the talk, the speaker’s biography, and a link to book a place are provided below.
Exploring the Implementation of Safecity in the UK: Lessons from Manchester and Beyond
This seminar will explore how Safecity’s data-driven methodology to address sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) can be adapted within the UK context. Drawing from three complementary projects, the session will illustrate Safecity’s local and global relevance. First, it will highlight our Manchester initiative led by a Youth Safety Champion, which engages Greater Manchester Police and Victim Services in community-led advocacy for safer cities. Second, it will share insights from Click Safe, our research project examining online harms and digital safety for women and youth. Finally, it will reflect on how gender-sensitive policing practices are being applied within our Safecity methodology in India. Together, these experiences demonstrate how civic tech, data, and partnerships can foster safer, more inclusive communities both online and offline.
About the Speaker
ElsaMarie D’Silva is a social entrepreneur and founder of Red Dot Foundation (India) and Red Dot Foundation Global (USA), best known for creating Safecity, a crowdsourced data platform that maps sexual and gender-based violence to drive urban and systemic change. Her work transforms anonymous stories into actionable data, enabling safer cities through partnerships with police, city governments, and communities across 20+ countries. An Aspen New Voices Fellow, Vital Voices Global Leadership Awardee, and Rotary Peace Fellow, ElsaMarie brings two decades of leadership experience bridging gender, technology, and peacebuilding. She has advised the G7’s W7 Gender Equality Working Group, served on the Global Diplomacy Lab Advisory Council, and spoken at international forums including the UN, Paris Peace Forum, and World Expo. Previously an aviation executive and Cabin Safety Instructor, she integrates lessons from aviation’s safety culture into gender and leadership training. Her vision, “Safety as a Pathway to Equality,” aims to improve the lives of one billion people by 2030. Previously an aviation executive and Cabin Safety Instructor, she integrates lessons from aviation’s safety culture into gender and leadership training. Her vision, “Safety as a Pathway to Equality,” aims to improve the lives of one billion people by 2030. ElsaMarie’s work has been featured by TIME, CNN, NPR, and recognized by the UN Secretary-General. She continues to champion data-driven, inclusive approaches to ending gender-based violence globally.
