In the big picture, I envisage making a positive impact on the age old social problem of child abuse. I plan to address this by providing the knowledge and skills required for kids to recognise, strategise and escape situations that are potentially dangerous through the App platform ‘Safety Aware.’
For those entrenched in abusive situations who have normalised the actions of their perpetrator, I’d like them to question their predicament, understand that they are being violated and trust safe person enough to disclose what is going on rather than keeping secrets the perpetuate the cycle of abuse.
It’s such an amazing yet daunting goal! How could a small team possibly take on what appears to be an insurmountable task? My solution is by providing information in a light-hearted and unobtrusive way (through games and activities) to alert kids of danger and encourage them to engage their primal fight/flight rather than looking to others for protection.
This blind faith in others can sometimes be a warning sign in itself. An unfortunate truth about child abuse is that perpetrators are more often people in positions of trust than ‘strangers’. It must be so confusing for kids who could be violated by trusted people across all social groups! The only way we can we protect the most vulnerable members of society is by empowering them to trust and believe in themselves.
That is the foundation within which this entire App has evolved— self Trust! Kids need to learn to reconnect with their primal need for protection and awaken their ability to read cues, identify abuse and consider safe strategies to protect themselves.
If I am able to achieve this through an app, imagine how wide spread the implications would be! Success could lead to a tsunami of social changes that could mend some very deep fractures in our world!
Without your support, I could not produce the App, so I am asking you to help me cast the first link in a chain that has the capability of making our world a much safer and happier place!
With gratitude!
Sally Jones