Creating a safe environment for our users in partnership with @nnedv, @SAFEIreland and Urban Tech Collective

Creating a safe, secure and enjoyable environment for our users is an abiding mission for us at Twitter. Partnering with expert groups enables us to get continuous feedback and insight on our safety mechanisms and build a safe environment for our users, always taking into consideration their needs.

Our policies and safety mechanisms are informed by the feedback we receive from organizations that are experts in their fields, whether it’s protecting victims of abuse or empowering young people to create a safe online environment. We are privileged to work with a wide range of organizations.

During the last few months, we’ve been working closely with a number of such organizations to fight online abuse. We’ve partnered with SAFE Ireland (@SAFEIreland), the National Network to End Domestic Violence (@nnedv) and Urban Tech Collective and worked in concert with them on a number of initiatives that we believe will enhance our users’ experience.

SAFE Ireland
SAFE Ireland is an Irish organization representing frontline domestic violence services in Ireland. Their work reflects the needs and experiences of women and their children affected by domestic violence. They are leaders in research and disseminating best practices to their members, professionals and statutory bodies. They help give a voice to victims by enabling them to share their experiences and the enormity and extent of domestic violence in Ireland. Their insight and expertise have been extremely helpful to us at Twitter, and we recently partnered with them to promote the campaign “Man Up.” This initiative focuses on encouraging men to speak up against domestic abuse, challenge abuse and support women and children.

National Network to End Domestic Violence
The National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) is a social change organization dedicated to creating a social, political and economic environment in which violence against women no longer exists.

As the leading voice for domestic violence victims and their advocates, we greatly respect their expertise and consult with them regularly on our safety policies and procedures. Their feedback has been instrumental in creating a trusted environment for Twitter users, particularly through their Safety Net initiative. This project focuses on the intersection of technology and intimate partner abuse and works to address how it impacts the safety, privacy, accessibility and civil rights of victims.

NNEDV provides us with valuable context, insight and resources that have been a great assistance to our safety teams. We are excited to partner with them and to promote their work through an “Ads for Good” grant and create guides for their community on how to stay safe on Twitter. Stay tuned for upcoming Twitter resources and existing online guides published as part of their Safety Net documentation.

Urban Tech Collective
Urban Tech Collective (UTC) is a nonprofit organization focused on bridging the digital divide in underserved communities. We’re working closely with them and their founder Carla Franklin on the development of our policies and we regularly discuss how to fight online abuse through forums and events.

UTC and Twitter are partnering on an upcoming hackathon in support of Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon). Safe Horizon is the largest victims’ services agency in the United States, working with more than 250,000 children, adults and families affected by crime and abuse throughout NYC each year. They offer assistance to victims through 57 program locations, including shelter, in-person counseling, legal services and more. Their mission is to provide support, prevent violence and promote justice for victims of crime and abuse, their families and communities.

The 72-hour coding hackathon will host teams of coders from the NYC area to collaborate and develop innovative, digital applications that address solutions to specific challenges facing victims of online harassment, human trafficking and domestic abuse. The event will take place during Internet Week NY, May 18-24, 2015 and will be promoted through the hashtag #EndCyberDV (End Cyber Domestic Violence).