The car industry has been aware about this inequality for years, but still have not incorporated equal car testing. Volvo’s research from more than 43.000 car crashes, including more than 72.000 people, wrapped into data files and long research papers is incomprehensible for the average consumer. Yet, it’s important for them to understand these insights, to demand that all cars brands put safety first and incorporate this data. With EVA, we gave the facts a face. She became the cornerstone of our entire campaign, to close the gender crash gap.

Most cars are designed for the average-sized man, and mainly tested on male crash test dummies. As a result, women are less safe and more likely to get injured in a car crash. In fact, they are 71% more likely to be injured and 17% more likely to die.

But not when it comes to Volvo. They have gathered real-world data since the 1970s to learn what happens during a collision — regardless of size or gender. This has made Volvo cars equally safe for all people.

With the E.V.A. Initiative, we wanted to highlight this issue and offer all competitors to download Volvo’s data. The objective was not only to address the issue, but to close the gender crash gap. To make it more human, we gave the facts a face and showed how it affects women in a personal and direct way.

Volvo’s philosophy has always been to put people first. 60 years ago, they gave away their three-point safety belt patent. So, we thought: what if we could get Volvo to make cars safer for everyone, once again?

And that’s exactly what we did. To make cars safer for women, we collected all of Volvo’s safety research and made it available to everyone. By creating a digital library with data from more than 43,000 collisions and 72,000 people, the research became open and free to any company to learn from.

For the first time ever, anyone could download more than 40 years of research and learn how it has led to some of Volvo’s most innovative systems. We then gave the numbers a face and showed how the injustice personally affects women in a global campaign with film, print, social, outdoor, and PR.

We found that 80% of all car purchases are influenced by women and that 63% of female buyers claim to do all research and purchasing on their own; their top priority being safety. Yet 3 in 4 women feel misunderstood by the industry.

When exploring the subject, we found a deadly truth. Women are 47% more likely to be seriously injured, 71% more likely to be moderately injured and 17% more likely to die in a car crash. The reason? Most crash tests are based on male crash test dummies.

Therefore, we saw an opportunity to to create real change in the car industry. Our aim was not only to address the issue, but also to take real action and close the gender crash gap. But to get people’s attention, we needed to show how this injustice affects women in a personal and direct way.

Data can be challenging to communicate, and global gender equality is a complex subject. So in order to make the data more human and easy-to-understand, we gave the facts a face and created EVA who became the embodiment of all Volvo’s safety research throughout the years. This way, we could humanize the data in a creative way and show how the inequality affects women on a personal level.

The basic rule for the Traffic Accident Research Team is that the more information that can be obtained, the better. The purpose is to learn more about accidents and their consequences, knowledge that can subsequently be applied in product development. To this day, they have studied more than 43,000 cars with 72,000 occupants.

We not only made it possible to download the data, but we clearly showed how it has been implemented in Volvo’s most innovative safety features such as WHIPS, SIPS, and numerous child safety products. Additionally, we went through Volvo’s medical research papers, took out key points and translated it into terms that everyone could understand.

The campaign quickly became news and sparked a global conversation about equal road safety. So far, the film has garnered over 85 millon views and has reached over 70 countries. It has appeared in over 450 articles and has been featured on newscasts and blogs all around the globe. With over 280 million social media impressions, we got the world talking about an issue many people were unaware of.

It also created a debate within the auto industry as other carmakers embraced the initiative, such as electric vehicle startup Uniti. But most importantly, more than 11,000 people have downloaded the data, which gives hope that EVA will improve the safety of women in all cars.

• Countries reached: +71

• Downloads from knowledge library: +11.000

• Film views: +85 million

• +450 news outlets

• Earned media reach: +317 million

• Social media reach: +90 million

• Engagement: +3 million

• Social media impressions: +280 million