MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- A former gubernatorial candidate in Wisconsin has unveiled a big project she's been working on -- a mobile app, aimed at empowering women.
The "Building Brave" mobile app is a social media platform that functions as the cornerstone of the identically named nonprofit that Mary Burke launched last fall, The Capital Timesreported.
"Our message to women is to be bold, to be brave, but most important, to be you," Burke told a small crowd of entrepreneurs, business professionals and community leaders at the Kauffman Foundation-sponsored 1 Million Cups event series.
The app contains an array of features meant to encourage women to be their most courageous selves. Users can share messages, chat with a "support squad" of other women, or engaged in conversation in sub-communities, such as "women in tech" or "moms."
They can also participate in challenges to act more assertively in the real world. These lessons include learning to say no, saying "sorry" with less frequency or maintaining eye contact during conversations.
Users who complete challenges can accrue points that can then be translated into charitable donations to other nonprofits working to support women.
The app's goal is for women to grow and begin taking more risks in their personal and professional lives through the challenges and reinforcement from other users. Burke said running for governor was something that she wouldn't have done without others' encouragement. Burke, a Democrat, lost the 2014 election to Republican Gov. Scott Walker.
"It took other people to see a governor in me, for me to see the governor in myself," she said. "And that's a little bit of what Building Brave is about."
Be sure and try our new SNOWCAST APP! It is the "snow equivalent to STORM SHIELD" - a great new product that gives you high resolution snow forecasts for any part of the nation! It has just been introduced for iPhones, but we are working on the Android version! Just search SNOWCAST in the App Store or click here.