Bell Bajao Global Campaign
Summary
In 2010, Breakthrough committed to galvanize young men around the world to challenge social norms, take a stand against domestic violence, and promote equal rights for women by expanding its successful ‘Bell Bajao’ Campaign to a global scale. Using a comprehensive program of highly memorable content, curriculum and training modules delivered via new and traditional media, Breakthrough will inspire men and boys from around the globe to join the campaign, share their own transformative stories, and learn how to become mentors, advocates and key players in the global effort to combat violence against women. Breakthrough announced the global expansion of the Bell Bajao Campaign at the 2010 Clinton Global Initiative, proposing a worldwide call to action that builds upon Breakthrough’s methodology, experience, and success.
Approach
APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY
As a leading resource for multimedia tools and integrated community-based sensitization and mobilization activities around human rights issues, Breakthrough will design the Bell Bajao Global Campaign to make critical contributions to reframing the global agenda on gender-based violence. The Bell Bajao Global Campaign will be built on the ongoing successes and lessons learned from the national campaign in India. A cutting-edge website will serve as the virtual platform of Breakthrough’s Bell Bajao Global Campaign, providing a live, interactive campaign space with tools and resources for a growing movement to utilize and build upon. Through an expansive network of cross-sector, regional and country specific partnerships, Breakthrough will deliver the messaging and trainings of the Bell Bajao Global Campaign to audiences around the world. Community, cultural, faith, education and civil society leaders and educators will receive resources and trainings to initiate and guide discussions on the issue of violence against women and help develop champions against gender-based violence. To monitor its campaign impact, Breakthrough will continue to harness critical lessons learned from the national campaign in India and develop indicators to measure changes in attitude towards violence against women, increases in reporting on incidence of violence, and proactive interventions in violent situations.
IMPLEMENTATION, TIMELINE, AND DELIVERABLES
By systematically and strategically expanding the scope of the Bell Bajao Global Campaign over the next three years, Breakthrough will instill the Bell Bajao message in individuals and institutions so that it becomes part of a new norm. Through this strategic inclusion, the issue of violence against women will be brought out from behind closed doors and openly addressed by society at-large. Breakthrough will use its multimedia expertise to build a cutting-edge, virtual platform to house the Bell Bajao Global Campaign and enable peer-to-peer outreach, uplift Champion voices and encourage advocacy at multiple levels. The user-friendly virtual platform will feature Breakthrough’s inspiring content, including PSAs delivered by our celebrity Champions, interactive tools that allow visitors to sign the global pledge to help end violence against women, post their own videos and testimonials, and invite their friends and colleagues to join the effort. The virtual platform will also house our downloadable training modules so that they can be shared offline in larger group settings. Breakthrough’s Bell Bajao Global Campaign will also utilize social media to take the message virally around the world. In collaboration with experts in the field, Breakthrough will design universal training modules that can be adapted and translated to different languages and cultural contexts, facilitating the training of trainers and further expanding the network of global champions. The modules will be designed to educate on the issue, address how to change social norms and behaviors related to violence against women and provide mentoring and advocacy skill-building.
Background
Violence against women encompasses all forms of violence that are primarily or exclusively committed against women and girls around the globe. This includes domestic violence, the systemic rape and abuse of women in war, the trafficking of women, and sex selective practices. Building on the success of its 2006 CGI commitment in India, ‘Reducing the Twin Pandemics: HIV/AIDS and Gender Based Violence,’ Breakthrough will implement global dissemination of evocative video, radio, and print PSAs to challenge young men and boys to take a stand against violence against women in all its forms. Through innovative partnerships and awareness- and skill-building trainings, the Bell Bajao Global Campaign will demonstrate that powerful ideas communicated in creative ways can change cultural norms and behaviors.
Progress Update
March 2014
Breakthrough announced the global expansion of the Bell Bajao campaign at the 2010 Clinton Global Initiative. As noted above Breakthrough worked with partners in China, Malaysia, Pakistan and Vietnam to produce culturally appropriate versions of Bell Bajao for their constituencies. In 2013, Breakthrough continued the global expansion in the iteration of Ring the Bell: One million men. One million promises.
As reported, Breakthrough officially launched this phase with high profile events in New York, New Delhi, Johannesburg, and Rio de Janeiro – the latter with partners Sonke Gender Justice Network and Promundo. Celebrities including Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Richard Branson, musician/activist Peter Gabriel, Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan, Life of Pi star Irrfan Khan, and numerous others joined the campaign, filming videos and urging men to make concrete, actionable promises to combat violence against women.
Ring the Bell has attracted more than 160,000 people from all corners of the globe. Additionally, men and women from around the world have shared their experiences with us – and their plans and determination to ensure that violence is no longer a part of their families and lives.
Per an online survey analysis report completed November 2013, Breakthrough determined that prime motivators for making promises include personal experience and the belief that ending violence against women will result in a fairer and more just world.
Over the past year, Breakthrough launched focused campaigns in India to combat early marriage and gender biased sex selection (GBSS). In the U.S., Breakthrough partnered with NASCAR to inspire auto racing fans to ‘be that guy’ who stands against sexual harassment. Breakthrough’s 30 second #BeThatGuy animation was featured at the February 2014 Daytona 500 as well as the November 2013 Ford Sprint Cup.
Partnership Opportunities
Seeking partners/resources:
Breakthrough is primarily seeking financial resources to enable the digital tools, media push, our new violence against women app, and other elements so essential to making Ring the Bell: One million men. One million promises a success.