In 2020, the Canadian Women’s Foundation launched the Signal for Help to help abuse survivors in the pandemic’s spike of gendered violence. The hand gesture innovation is simple – tuck the thumb into the palm and cover the thumb with fingers to ask for help without leaving a digital trace.
Used in over 50 countries and shared virally around the world, it has saved lives and continues to be used. In Canada, 40% of people know about the signal and 10% have used it or seen it used. To support the use of the signal, the CWF developed Signal for Help Responder digital learning tools, as research shows that many people do not have the confidence and knowledge to offer abuse survivors non-judgemental support.
About the Innovators:
The Canadian Women’s Foundation is Canada’s public foundation for gender justice and equality. They advance this by growing support for grassroots feminist action, partnering with communities and organizations to improve conditions, and building diverse leadership and knowledge for sustainable change.
Since 1991, their generous donors and supporters have contributed more than $250 million to fund over 3,200 life-transforming programs throughout Canada.
The work of the Canadian Women’s Foundation and the organizations we support takes place on traditional First Nations, Métis, and Inuit territories. We are grateful for the opportunity to meet and work on this land. However, we recognize that land acknowledgments are not enough. We need to pursue truth, reconciliation, decolonization, and allyship in an ongoing effort to make right with all our relations.
Their mission is critical. Every 6 days, a woman in Canada is killed by their intimate partner, 1 in 4 women will face violence before reaching age 50, and marginalized women and gender-diverse people including those who are Indigenous, migrant, or living with disabilities face elevated risks. In the COVID-19 pandemic, femicide, family violence, and sexual assault increased significantly. Learn more at canadianwomen.org.
