#195 – Beth Brooke | VERITY NOW – Gender-Inclusive Vehicle Safety Standards

Building Better with Brandon Bartneck

Beth Brooke joins to discuss the need for gender-inclusive vehicle safety standards.

Takeaways

• Vehicle safety standards are designed with the male body in mind, leaving women at a higher risk of severe injury or death in car accidents.
• Using a biofidelic female crash test dummy that accurately represents the female body's physiology can improve vehicle safety for women.
• The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has the power to implement this change with a simple rule change.
• Raising awareness and advocating for gender equity in vehicle safety is crucial to driving change.

Chapters

• Introduction and Background
• Vehicle Safety Standards Designed for Men
• The Need for Gender-Inclusive Safety Standards
• Proposed Solution: Biofidelic Female Crash Test Dummy
• Implementation and Cost Considerations
• The Impact of Vehicle Weight and Electric Vehicles
• The Role of NHTSA and Government Regulations
• The Importance of Awareness and Consumer Advocacy
• Focus on New Vehicles and Future Considerations
• Learning from Other Countries' Approaches
• Evaluation and Approval of Crash Test Dummies
• Addressing Discrimination in Safety Standards
• Engaging Stakeholders and Building Trust
• Recognizing Nuance and Finding Common Ground
• Call to Action: Join Verity Now and Raise Awareness

Links

• Show notes: http://brandonbartneck.com/futureofmobility/bethbrooke
• https://www.veritynow.org/

Bio:

Beth A. Brooke retired as the Global Vice-Chair – Public Policy at EY and a member of the firm’s Global Executive Board. Ms. Brooke had public policy responsibility for the firm’s operations in over 150 countries and was the global sponsor for EY’s Diversity and Inclusiveness efforts. During the Clinton Administration, she worked in the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where she was responsible for all tax policy matters related to insurance and managed care. She played important roles in the healthcare reform and Superfund reform efforts. Ms. Brooke is a prominent voice around the world on Diversity and Inclusion, including most prominently on LGBT inclusion and women. She has been named eleven times to the list of Forbes “World’s 100 Most Powerful Women“. In 2017, she received the Theodore Roosevelt Award, the top individual honor bestowed by the U.S. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). She has also been inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame

Company description:

VERITY (Vehicle Equity Rules in Transportation) NOW strives to achieve equality in vehicle safety by educating on, and advocating for, crash testing standards that protect every body, regardless of gender, height, weight or age. Inherent biases in crash testing put women, young people, the elderly and heavier body types at significantly higher risk of injury or death in car crashes. This is unacceptable. We need to update vehicle crash testing standards and practices to better understand the safety needs of a broader range of body types. Technologies exist that can give us a more accurate understanding of how all vehicle occupants are impacted in a crash. These technologies, which employ sensors and other advanced tools, create better data – which can lead to better designs that account for every body.

Future of Mobility:

The Future of Mobility podcast is focused on the development and implementation of safe, sustainable, effective, and accessible mobility solutions, with a spotlight on the people and technology advancing these fields.

Edison Manufacturing and Engineering:

Edison is your low volume contract manufacturing partner, focused on assembly of complex mobility and energy products that don’t neatly fit within traditional high-volume production methods.

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