Example Project: hers*
hers* addresses gender-based insecurity in public spaces. It focuses on empowering FLINTA* (women, lesbians, intersex, non-binary, trans, and agender people) through an ecosystem that combines a mobile app, a wearable safety device, and a strong community network.
The Problem
Women and gender-diverse people often feel unsafe in public spaces, especially when walking or using public transport. Many adapt their behavior (taking longer routes, calling someone while walking, carrying pepper spray). Cities, built largely for cars and male mobility patterns, ignore these everyday safety issues.
The Goal
To create safer, more inclusive urban mobility by increasing both real safety and the feeling of security through collective awareness, community support, and data-driven prevention.
Solution Overview
Safe Routes
The app guides you along the safest path, based on community feedback and real city data about lighting, traffic, and reported incidents.
Safety Map
You can see safe and unsafe spots in your area and mark new ones yourself. Every report helps others feel safer and builds a shared awareness of risky places.
Alarm & Help
In an emergency, you can send out a loud alarm through the app or the connected SafetyDevice. People nearby from the hers* community are alerted and can offer help. Your personal emergency contacts can also be notified automatically.
Community Power
The hers* SafeClub is your digital support circle. It’s a place to learn, share, and exchange tips on self-defense, awareness, and mutual care.
Together, these tools turn everyday movement into something collective and empowering. By combining personal safety, shared data, and community care, hers* transforms fear into confidence and isolation into connection.
The Designed Experience
hers* was created with one clear goal — to make safety feel intuitive, inclusive, and empowering. Everything — from colors and icons to accessibility and emotional design — was consciously developed for people of all backgrounds and abilities.
Visual Identity
The look is modern, calm, and confident. A gender-neutral color palette shifts between light and dark modes for comfort day and night. Green means safety, blue feels neutral, and red signals danger — all high in contrast for visibility. Typography combines the expressive ABC Whyte with the clear SF Pro Text, creating a voice that’s bold yet approachable.
Inclusive Interaction
Accessibility was part of the core design, not an afterthought. Users can switch languages, adjust text size, or choose left- or right-hand control. A “simple language” mode supports different reading levels, and gentle motion avoids stress. Avatars and illustrations are neutral and diverse, so everyone can find themselves in the experience.
Emotional Design
hers* speaks in a warm, natural tone. The interface guides with empathy — no fear-based visuals, only clarity and care. Every screen encourages calm action, helping users feel safe, not watched or warned.
Product Experience
The SafetyDevice turns the digital idea into a physical sense of safety. It fits naturally in your hand, works even without a phone, and uses simple signals — light, sound, vibration — to connect you to the community. Made from recycled materials, it reflects the same care for people and the planet that defines the whole project.
Systemic Journey Map
| Becoming Aware | Exploring Safety Solutions | Joining hers* | Using hers* App & Device | Engaging with the SafeCommunity | Contributing to Systemic Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| User Actions | Recognizes gender-based insecurity in public spaces; sees hers* campaign, website, or social media content; reads about FLINTA* mobility and safety issues | Downloads the app; explores features like SafetyMap, SafeWalks, and SafetyDevice; decides to join the community | Registers, verifies account, creates SafeProfile, sets emergency contacts, and personalizes app; receives onboarding education about empowerment and data ethics | Uses SafetyMap for safe routes; marks Safe/UnsecurePlaces; uses the alarm or SafeDevice when threatened; interacts with SaferSpaces; participates in SafeWalks | Reads and contributes to SafeCommunity content; shares experiences; rates SaferSpaces; joins awareness events and SafeNews; mentors new users | Continues donating data (SafeMap inputs, route ratings); advocates for urban change; collaborates with planners or activists using hers* data insights; supports inclusive city design |
| User Goals | Understand personal risk and available solutions for safer mobility | Find a trusted, feminist-centered safety ecosystem that aligns with personal values | Build digital and emotional security through participation in a verified community | Feel protected, informed, and connected during daily mobility; gain real-time safety support | Share knowledge, reduce stigma, and foster collective empowerment | Turn individual safety action into social impact and policy transformation |
| Pain Points / Needs | Lack of trustworthy info; normalization of harassment; emotional fatigue from constant vigilance | Skepticism about data privacy, reliability, and inclusivity of safety tools | Potential onboarding barriers (verification steps, understanding of features); emotional discomfort recalling unsafe experiences | Dependence on stable app–device connection; need for quick, intuitive emergency tools; possible tech limitations in public areas | Sustaining engagement over time; risk of retraumatization in community discussions; ensuring digital safety within social spaces | Ensuring collected data leads to visible real-world change; avoiding tokenism or performative activism |
| Gains | Awareness of systemic gender inequality in mobility and empowerment through recognition | Discovery of a reliable, community-based safety network; sense of solidarity | Empowerment through self-verification, customization, and knowledge; immediate sense of control | Improved safety perception; fast support during emergencies; emotional relief and belonging | Deeper sense of mutual care and social recognition; pride in collective resilience | Long-term contribution to safer, more inclusive, and feminist urban environments |
| Environmental Impact | Encourages walking, cycling, and public transit over car use by improving perceived safety | Promotes sustainable mobility and visibility of underrepresented groups in urban data | Provides safety-driven route planning that reduces fear-based car dependency | Aggregates spatial data for cities to redesign lighting, accessibility, and street planning | Drives awareness around sustainable, inclusive design in community spaces and cafés | Supports transformation toward equitable, low-emission, and gender-aware city planning |
| Social Impact | Raises awareness about FLINTA* safety in public discourse | Challenges patriarchal urban design norms through design activism | Builds trust networks among women and gender-diverse individuals | Creates real-time collective protection and mutual aid via community response | Empowers participants to become advocates, educators, and role models | Shifts societal norms toward collective responsibility, empathy, and feminist urban policy |
| Data / Others | Survey data (p. 8–10) validates need: 85 % of FLINTA* experience harassment; 87 % feel unsafe on foot | User analytics from downloads and pre-registration interest | Verification statistics; SafeProfile completion; device pairing data | SafetyMap inputs, SafeWalks, alarms, and community assistance logs | Community-generated content metrics, SaferSpace ratings, event participation | Open-data collaboration with city planners; aggregated insights informing preventive measures and awareness campaigns |
The Impact
No one should feel afraid walking home. hers* helps people move freely, connect locally, and make their city safer — together. It also gives urban planners real data to build fairer, more caring spaces for all genders.
Team
We’re a team of transformation designers who believe in design as activism. hers* was created by Vitali Knutas, Frydia von Hinüber, Elisabeth Friesinger at Hochschule Augsburg.
Together we make cities safer.
Presentation Slides
Documentation
Be careful!
Next to your final presentation you should upload here a pdf that contains all methods used during the course for your project: notes from critical reflection cards, inclusive user groups, systemic journey map and all other methods used.
Authors
Elisabeth Friesinger