Located in Los Angeles, Alexandria House provides safe and supportive housing for women and children in the process of moving from emergency shelter to economic stability and permanent housing. Alexandria House receives over 1,000 calls per month and provides food, clothing, hygiene products, and referral services to women seeking emergency shelter. Due to the pandemic and a recent fire, Alexandria House was having difficulty meeting the menstrual needs of its residents, so in April of 2020, The Pad Project provided them with a grant to purchase bulk menstrual supplies. The grant helped Alexandria House purchase 9,000 pads and distribute them to 87 individuals!

The Committee Against Domestic Abuse (CADA) is an organization located in Mankato, Minnesota that provides safety and support to victims of domestic and sexual violence through education, advocacy, and shelter. Each year, CADA provides services for 2,000 to 3,000 individuals, and its emergency safety shelter houses 100 to 125 women and 60 to 115 children. CADA’s shelter provides residents with hygiene items like shampoo, bodywash, toothpaste, and menstrual products. Because CADA relies on product donations, they don’t usually get a say in what type of products they receive. However, in June of 2020, The Pad Project provided a grant to CADA to purchase bulk menstrual supplies, allowing CADA the flexibility to get a variety of menstrual products to meet the unique needs of those staying in CADA’s shelter and receiving CADA’s services. CADA is using the grant to stock their shelter and seven community advocacy offices with menstrual products! So far, they’ve purchased 18 packs of pads, 10 packs of tampons, and 4 menstrual cups, and they’ve distributed menstrual products to 46 individuals.

The Center for Health Justice (CHJ) in Los Angeles serves people impacted by incarceration by providing health education and assistance with reintegrating into the community. This includes coordinating access to quality medical care, essential support services, skill building activities, and extracurricular activities. The Pad Project provided a grant to CHJ to purchase and distribute menstrual products to the people they serve. CHJ will distribute products in re-entry kits at their Service Center, and they will also provide products to the people served by SHIELDS for Families.

Covenant House California (CHC) is a nonprofit shelter that provides sanctuary and support to youth ages 18-24 that are experiencing homelessness or being trafficked. CHC provides a wide variety of services, and they recently partnered with The Pad Project to help meet the menstrual health needs of the youth they serve. To do this, The Pad Project provided CHC with 30,000 pads from TOP Organics!

With 45 years of experience, the CSUN Women’s Research and Resource Center (WRRC) is the oldest women’s center in the Cal State system. Their goal is to enhance campus and community understanding of gender issues and concerns and to ensure that students at CSUN have their basic needs met. In Fall 2016, the WRRC launched their campus’s first Food and Toiletry Pantry, and within the first 3 months, they had 103 visits. Before the pandemic, the pantry was averaging 120-160 visits per month. Last fall, the WRRC launched a Menstrual Care Initiative, but currently they are only able to offer students 5 pads or tampons per visit per week. To help meet the needs of students, The Pad Project has provided a grant to the WRRC to purchase pads, liners, tampons, and menstrual cups, which will be distributed to students on campus free of charge. This partnership between The Pad Project and the WRRC will work to promote menstrual equity among CSUN students and to break the stigma surrounding menstruation. So far, 56 packs of pads have been purchased, 50 have been distributed, and 43 individuals have been served. As a pandemic safety precaution, the WRRC is only doing no-contact product pick up.

The Department of Public Health in Dearborn, MI is partnering with Dearborn Public Schools to decrease period poverty among students. Dearborn has the highest concentration of Arab Americans in the U.S., and 26.1% of Dearborn residents live in poverty. The Department of Public Health is piloting a health-in-all-policies approach and plans to work with the 3 local high schools to end period stigma and model a new approach to dealing with menstrual health in a culturally appropriate manner.

Deeply inspired by the documentary, Period. End of Sentence., Dignity Grows began as a one-night event to pack menstrual and personal hygiene supplies for individuals in need. In the span of two years, the organization has become a national movement with over 20 chapters and is rapidly growing. The Pad Project provided Dignity Grows with a grant, which they’ve so far used to purchase and distribute 50,000 pads to 1,250 menstruators! Dignity Grows chapters in Phoenix, Portland, and Hartford distributed the pads in 1,250 Dignity Grows Totes.

East Boston Neighborhood Health Center’s (EBNHC) mission is to promote and sustain healthy communities, families, and individuals by providing easily accessible, high-quality health care services to all who live and work in their service area and surrounding communities, without regard to age, income, insurance status, language, culture, race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, or social circumstances, regardless of ability to pay. EBNHC serves over 80,000 patients, 86% of whom live below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level.

Equal Period strives to eradicate period poverty by donating period products to vulnerable menstruators across the United States, along with working to break the stigma surrounding periods by distributing educational materials. Equal Period provides menstrual products to approximately 200-300 individuals in need every month. The majority of Equal Period donations are menstrual cups, which are intended to last for several years.

"Periods don’t stop during pandemics” - said Dana Marlowe, Founder and Executive Director of I Support the Girls (ISTG). ISTG is a nonprofit that collects and distributes essential items, including bras, underwear, and menstrual hygiene products to women and folx experiencing homelessness, impoverishment, or distress. In July of 2020, The Pad Project provided a grant to ISTG to help cover the shipping costs of these essential items. Using the grant, ISTG has been able to distribute 46,649 products, including bras, pads, and tampons, to 14 different social service organizations across 9 states. These organizations include domestic violence shelters, women and family shelters, substance abuse programs, Native American reservations, and public schools.

Las Adelitas is a program run by Masa, an organization that partners with Mexican and Latino children, youth, and families in the South Bronx to develop strong learners and leaders who fully participate in and contribute to the larger community. Masa’s community-led, integrated model engages the entire family, grounded in a deep commitment to strengthening literacy, leadership, and power for Mexican, Central American, and Indigenous People. Las Adelitas is a year-round young women’s empowerment and action-based program for young women of color in the South Bronx. The curriculum includes topics related to identity, gender-based violence, menstrual and sexual health, and feminism. In 2020, Las Adelitas successfully completed 3 two-hour menstrual health and sexual education workshops. Due to the impact of the pandemic on women and families, Las Adelitas began distributing menstrual hygiene products to women and girls in their community. In October of 2020, The Pad Project provided a grant to Las Adelitas to purchase, bag, and deliver menstrual supplies to women and girls in the South Bronx. The grant helped Las Adelitas distribute menstrual hygiene products to 329 women and girls in the community!

No More Secrets Mind Body Spirit Inc. is a nonprofit whose mission is to decrease stigmas, silence, and secrecy by increasing self-esteem, socialization, and self-love. They provide consultation services, facilitate trauma informed comprehensive programming, and provide educational trainings and workshops. No More Secrets Mind Body Spirit has created the only menstrual hygiene bank and in-home delivery service in Philadelphia to end period poverty in their community. They serve PA, NJ, and DE, and they ship nationwide to people in need. The Pad Project provided a grant of $1,000 to No More Secrets Mind Body Spirit to purchase bulk menstrual products and spread their campaign. The grant will allow them to meet the menstrual needs of 20 families for 3 to 5 months.

Photograph credit:
ELIZABETH ROBERTSON / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER FROM THE INQUIRER

Partnership Health Center (PHC) promotes optimal health and well-being for all through comprehensive, patient-focused, accessible, and equitable care. PHC is a sliding-fee-scale provider of health care services in Missoula County, MT, and they serve over 16,000 patients annually. Providing free menstrual products to their employees and the people they serve is a key strategy to promote Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at PHC.

Power Pump Girls, Inc. in Baton Rouge, Louisiana is a social impact club connecting and mobilizing women to disrupt systems of inequity. Power Pump Girls helped to successfully eliminate Louisiana’s tampon tax, and their “secured.” program provides education around menstruation and period poverty in order to shatter any stigmas or misconceptions. So far, the program has donated over 20,000 menstrual products to women and girls in need via partnerships with various community organizations. In July of 2020, The Pad Project provided a grant to Power Pump Girls secured. to fund 2 virtual town halls about menstruation and 144 months worth of menstrual products for schools to distribute. The grant helped Power Pump Girls purchase and distribute 7264 menstrual hygiene products!
Image Description:
Sherin Dawud and Raina Vallot, co-founders, Power Pump Girls, Inc.

Started by high school student and community health advocate Grace, Ready Girls is a nonprofit in Charlottesville, VA dedicated to youth serving other youth to lessen period stigma and increase access to period products through collaboration with local schools. Ready Girls uses volunteers to provide menstrual products to middle school students who do not otherwise have access to them.

Los Angeles Community Solar Fridge is a mutual aid project that designs and builds solar-powered community fridges and pantries. The fridge provides 24-7 access to receive and redistribute donated basic resources like food, water, hygiene products, first aid, and clothing without racist, classist or ableist barriers. Approximately 180 mothers, women, college students, seniors, and working class people visit Solar Fridge every 24 hours.

Serving approximately 2,000 people in Kentucky annually, St. Vincent de Paul Louisville strives to house, feed, and support those in need with compassion and dignity in order to build a community where opportunity and hope are available to all. The Pad Project has provided St. Vincent de Paul Louisville with a grant to purchase and distribute menstrual products at their transitional housing program. Products will be made available by case managers when individuals arrive at the shelter, and individuals will continue receiving products each month as needed. St. Vincent de Paul Louisville believes that these menstrual products will decrease the financial burden on individuals at the shelter and increase their level of comfort.

The Pad Project provided a grant to Students Against Period Poverty (SAPP), a nonprofit whose mission is to reduce period poverty by making menstrual products, education, and resources accessible to all. SAPP’s goal is to create kits of menstrual supplies (such as pads, tampons, menstrual cups, etc.) and distribute them to shelters in the Los Angeles area. SAPP will use the grant from The Pad Project to provide menstrual kits to 220-250 people who menstruate!

The Pad Project has partnered with The Ladybug Program, a nonprofit associated with The Rotary Club of Concord whose mission is to provide menstrual hygiene products to disadvantaged teens, women, and period-havers who do not have access to period products. The Ladybug Program works with 11 partners in the Contra Costa area to provide menstrual product kits to all people with periods, especially those who face housing insecurity or are escaping violent living situations. The Ladybug Program serves 450-640 individuals per month, 33% of whom are 18 or younger. Through The Pad Project’s partnership with TOP Organics, we will be providing The Ladybug Program with a pallet of menstrual products to distribute to people in need in their community!

The Source LGBT+ Center’s mission is to provide spaces within their communities for the LGBTQ+ population to learn, grow, belong, transform, question, and support. The Source LGBT+ Center provides a space where LGBT+ people can cultivate community and be their full and authentic selves. They also provide access to culturally competent health care, mental health, and social services to LGBTQ+ people and their communities. With a grant from The Pad Project, The Source LGBT+ Center will create 120 period care kits, each containing a one-month supply of menstrual products. The kits will be distributed from a closet in their community center and at events for their Trans Closet.

Founded by Gabrielle A. Perry, The Thurman Perry Foundation is a Louisiana-based nonprofit with a vision of removing obstacles to success and ensuring that every woman and girl impacted by incarceration has a chance to thrive and succeed. Their mission is to offer direct financial assistance, essential public health resources, and educational resources to at least 10,000 women and girls impacted by incarceration nationwide by the year 2030. With a grant from The Pad Project, The Thurman Perry Foundation, through their Girl Code initiative, which is a first-in-the-nation program donating organic, cotton, chlorine-free, fragrance-free products to incarcerated women, will be able to provide 6 months of period products to the women housed at Orleans Parish Justice Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, and finance their next donation of 36,000 organic period products to the women housed in the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women.

For over 126 years, the nonprofit Union Rescue Mission (URM) has provided safe shelter, meals, long-term rehabilitation programs, education, counseling, medical services, and encouragement to help individuals in Los Angeles escape homelessness forever. In June of 2020, The Pad Project provided a grant to URM for the purchase of bulk menstrual supplies. The grant is helping to support the menstrual hygiene needs of the women who currently live in Hope Gardens, a URM family center in Sylmar. With the funds, URM has purchased two pallets of menstrual products, and so far half of them have been distributed to 87 individuals!

Women 4 Women Tempe is dedicated to helping homeless and low-income women in Tempe, Arizona maintain their dignity, self-respect, and health by distributing menstrual hygiene products to those in need. In 2020, Women 4 Women Tempe donated 11,247 pad bags and 5,032 tampon bags for a total of 16,279 bags of menstrual supplies. They also donated 2,180 single pads, 2,197 Depends, and 1,490 Poise. In October of 2020, The Pad Project provided a grant to Women 4 Women Tempe to help them purchase and distribute more menstrual products. The grant has allowed Women 4 Women Tempe to prepare 70 additional bags per month containing pads, tampons, liners, sanitary wipes, and hand wipes for distribution to the women they serve.

Women’s Refugee Care (WRC) is located in Providence, RI and helps African refugee families transition to life in the United States while maintaining their cultural and ethnic identity. Within the refugee community, WRC’s work centers on direct services, case management, and mental health programming to provide comprehensive support and community. Within the state, WRC’s work promotes the rights of refugees through advocacy and awareness.

Located in Alachua, Florida, A. L. Mebane Middle School serves more than 300 students, many of whom live in low-income households. With a grant from The Pad Project, A. L. Mebane Middle School will make menstrual products freely available to students in the Student Services building

In Southern California, Downey Unified School District (DUSD) is working hard to support students and families during the pandemic by providing two meals a day at food distribution sites, serving 2,000 to 3,600 individuals each week. DUSD students are committed to achieving menstrual equity, which is why they created the Power 4 Periods club. This club fundraises and collects menstrual supplies through school-wide product drives to distribute to students who need them. In January 2021, to help support the menstrual health of DUSD students, The Pad Project provided the district with a grant to purchase menstrual products. With the funds, DUSD made and distributed 630 menstrual kits, each containing 15 individual menstrual products!

At East Troy High School in Wisconsin, the Feminism Subcommittee of the Activist Club is working with school administrators to launch a new program to provide baskets of free menstrual products in bathrooms throughout the school. The Pad Project has provided East Troy High School with a grant to purchase these menstrual products. The students and administrators working on this project plan to keep the baskets of products full for students in need throughout the school year.

Located in Lyons, NE, Lyons-Decatur Northeast Public Schools serves more than 270 students, 48% of whom qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. This means that students are often unable to afford menstrual products, and many report that they rely on peers, teachers, and administrators to provide these products.

In Southern California, Montebello Unified School District (MUSD) is working diligently to support students and families during the pandemic by providing food and other resources at meal distribution sites. Due to recent financial difficulties caused by the pandemic, many students and families in the district can no longer afford menstrual supplies, therefore in December 2020, The Pad Project provided MUSD with a grant to purchase menstrual products. The grant will provide these products to approximately 200 MUSD students in need.

In Fort Morgan, Colorado, Morgan County School District Re-3 (MCSD Re-3) is working hard to educate their students, provide resources for families, and inspire life-long learning. MCSD Re-3 is also dedicated to ensuring that no students have to miss school because they lack access to menstrual hygiene products. To help with this mission, The Pad Project provided MCSD Re-3 with a grant to purchase and distribute menstrual products to students.

Located in Tulsa, OK, Nathan Hale High School serves more than 1,000 students, many of whom rely on the school nurse and social worker for menstrual products. Nathan Hale High School is committed to continuing to provide these products so that students don't miss school and valuable learning opportunities, but they are also interested in providing students with reusable menstrual products as a more long-term solution.

Located in Jackson, Michigan, Northwest Connect is an alternative high school that works hard to meet the specific needs of its students. With a grant from The Pad Project, Northwest Connect will be able to provide free menstrual products in school bathrooms and send menstrual products home with students in need.

In Southern California, Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) is working hard to support students and families during the pandemic by providing meal distribution sites and resource referrals. Due to recent financial difficulties caused by the pandemic, many individuals and families in their district can no longer afford menstrual supplies, so SAUSD is working to provide those. In August of 2020, The Pad Project created an Amazon Wish List for SAUSD so donors could purchase menstrual supplies for students. So far, more than $1,600 worth of menstrual products have been donated to SAUSD. To continue to support the district’s work in 2021, The Pad Project provided SAUSD with a grant to purchase additional menstrual supplies that will benefit approximately 250 young menstruators.

Lauren is a high school student in Ohio who’s determined to make a difference in her community! She has been collecting donations of menstrual products and making period packages for Alicia’s Closet, which is a place for foster families and children to go and get clothes, shoes, formula, and hygiene products.

“Providing these products in the foster community within my community is a step towards bringing girls what they need. A period should never stop a girl from going to school, extra activities, or daily life. I wanted to bring awareness within my community about period poverty and just period acceptance all together because this issue affects women all around the world and if I can improve some of it within my community it is still a change in the right direction.”
-Lauren

The Pad Project is thrilled to have supported Lauren’s work by donating menstrual products for her period packages. Thank you, Lauren, for being an advocate for menstrual health!

Jen Glayzer is a nurse and researcher in Ohio who created the Free Flo Box, a little free library filled with menstrual products for those in need in her neighborhood. Recently, The Pad Project provided Jen with a product grant to stock the Free Flo Box. Of the 1,551 products donated, 799 have already been distributed to approximately 150 people!

"I want to provide period products that vary in type, size, and absorbency to people in need, giving them the power to choose which product is best for them. Because everyone should have access to the period products they need. Cups and period underwear are provided in the hope that they will help solve period product insecurity in my neighborhood. It has been exciting to see demand for pads and tampons drop significantly as I provide more sustainable options."
~ Jen Glayzer

The Pad Project is honored to support the Free Flo Box and is so thankful to Jen for being such an amazing menstrual equity advocate!

The Green Period Pantry (GPP) was founded in 2021 by student Gabi Wiggill and the Georgia Southern University (GS) Office of Student Wellness and Health Promotion. GPP’s goal is to address the intersection of period poverty and climate change by making environmentally friendly menstrual products available for free to students in need. GS will use the period underwear provided through the Giving Sustainability grant to further this mission by distributing it at educational tabling events and making it available in all GPPs on campus.

The nonprofit I Support The Girls (ISTG) provides essential hygiene items to women and folx experiencing homelessness, impoverishment, or distress. Through the Giving Sustainability grant, ISTG will provide period underwear to individuals in their Elevate Dignity D.C. program, which is a one-year program focusing on Section 8 Housing apartments located in Washington D.C. Program participants receive multiple boxes throughout the year with an assortment of aid, safety, and hygiene products, and the period underwear will provide participants with a sustainable way of managing their periods.

Located in Leon County, FL, Junior League of Tallahassee (JLT) is a nonprofit committed to improving the lives of children and families through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. With the help of the Menstrual Equity Coalition (Whole Child Leon, The Girl Flo Project, The Oasis Center for Women and Girls, Beyond the Pantry, The Foundation for Leon County Schools, and Sustainable Tallahassee), JLT will provide the Giving Sustainability grant’s period underwear to menstruating and soon-to-be menstruating youth who need it the most. JLT plans to distribute the period underwear at the 2022 Official Back-to-School Community Experience and to local college students in need.

In 2017, The Pad Project began working with Action India, a grassroots, community-based organization founded in 1976 in the midst of the Autonomous Women’s Movement in India, to identify a community of women who wanted a pad machine in their village. As seen in the film Period. End of Sentence.,The Pad Project helped Action India purchase and install a manual pad machine in the village of Kathikhera. Today, Action India holds more than 100 total workshops per month, covering three different locations, and reaches over 5,000 women directly or indirectly by their Menstrual Health Management (MHM) initiatives.

In November 2019, The Pad Project partnered with The Desai Foundation to help expand their Asani Sanitary Napkin Program to the Nanded District of Maharashtra. Our funding supported a portion of the funds required to purchase the new semi-automated machine, which produces retail quality sanitary napkins. The machine produces 5,000 pads per day, improving the health and livelihood of thousands who live in the region. So far, 16,800 pads have been distributed and 129,920 pads have been sold. Because of the pandemic, The Desai Foundation is not currently able to host large-scale MHM workshops. However, they have been conducting one-on-one informational sessions with women in target areas and have reached over 632 women and girls thus far.

The EcoHub Small Industries is a social enterprise working in more than 50 villages in the north-eastern states of Assam and Nagaland, India to produce sanitary napkins. The Pad Project has partnered with EcoHub to help grow their program by providing them with a manual pad machine. EcoHub aims to reach 2,000 women through the 5 villages they serve in the state of Nagaland. Additionally, EcoHub will conduct health check-ups and set up health awareness camps to improve menstrual and reproductive health. So far, Eco Hub has distributed approximately 7,000 pads to over 1,500 women and girls!

Steward's Trust is an NGO that has been working at a micro level in the rural areas of Northern India since 1987. They have implemented many community development programs, including Women’s Empowerment, Sanitary Napkin Program, Primary Education, Safe Drinking Water, Mother and Child Care, and more. Steward's Trust runs various programs to help young girls and women with MHM and SRHR to address their right to health care facilities. The Pad Project and Doc Impact provided grants to Steward's Trust to purchase a manual pad machine and run MHM workshops as part of their Project Hygiene - Sanitary Napkins. Steward's Trust hopes to provide pads to 4,000 menstruators and host an MHM workshop every month!

The Pad Project has partnered with Nishtha and Yoga Gives Back (YGB) to place 2 manual pad-making machines in West Bengal and thereby provide affordable, high quality menstrual products to girls and women in the local villages. The pad machines will also act as a source of income for the women who are with YGB’s Sister Aid Program at Nishtha.

WAJAMAMA is committed to improving the wellbeing of communities in Zanzibar by making holistic health care services accessible to women and girls from all socioeconomic backgrounds. In 2019 they opened Zanzibar’s first wellness center providing clinical services, fitness classes, and health promotion and education. WAJAMAMA provides MHM through a girl’s health initiative that is designed holistically around menstrual health, nutrition, exercise, and mental wellbeing. The Pad Project and the Trotula Fund awarded WAJAMAMA with a grant to deliver MHM and SRHR education, along with funding to purchase a manual pad machine to support a pad manufacturing micro-business for local women. Over the next two years, WAJAMAMA aims to engage 500 girls in their health program and to provide pads to girls attending local secondary schools.

The Pad Project has partnered with The Cova Project, an Australian registered charity that provides safe sanitary solutions and menstrual health education to girls in low-income countries around the world. Since they began in 2018, Cova has distributed 11,000 menstrual cups to girls in Liberia, Ghana, Uganda, South Africa, and Malawi, and according to Cova, 75% of the girls who’ve received a cup said that it has improved their confidence and activity level during menstruation. With a grant from The Pad Project, Cova will work with Irise Institute East Africa to distribute menstrual cups to girls in Jinja, Uganda.

Founded in 2017, The Dignified Girl Project (DGP) is a non-profit organization focused on menstrual health management and girls’ empowerment in The Bahamas. Its mission is to ensure every child and adolescent female has access to essential hygiene products and the education to be empowered to make informed decisions regarding their social, psychological, biological, and economic well being. The DGP has established 20 distribution centers on the islands of New Providence and Eleuthera and hosts a “My Period My Pride” education seminar annually. Through its partnership with The Pad Project, DGP is providing disposable pads and washable cloth pads for 150 adolescent girls, washable cloth pad workshops, and training for self-stitching skills. Through this partnership, DGP is able to increase its impact among the adolescent female population and migrant communities in particular. DGP will be giving more women and girls access to essential hygiene products, as well as establishing sustainable options for menstrual hygiene management.

HER Pakistan is a youth and women-led organization that empowers individuals about menstruation through education, service, and advocacy. They have a community education program, a school puberty education program, and a digital safe space (Oh My Period!) for menstruators across the world. They are currently working on Pakistan's first animated webseries on menstruation and a micro-enterprise program called Menstrupreneurs. The Pad Project is partnering with HER Pakistan to ensure the passionate athletes of the Gilgit-Baltistan Girls Football League are not held back by their period. The project provides education for athletes on how to manage their period safely, hygienically, and with confidence to ensure their participation in their favorite sport. The goal is to make sport accessible, equitable, and impactful for girls without letting menstruation become an obstacle. This project also aims to facilitate a dialogue with girls to bust myths and remove taboos around menstruation utilizing the medium of sport.

Pencils of Promise (PoP) is a 501(c)3 for-purpose organization that believes every child should have access to quality education. They build schools, programs, and global communities around the common goal of education for all. PoP partners with local communities and governments to achieve quality education through building and repairing schools, supporting teachers with literacy training, and providing innovative resources and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programming.

The Pad Project has partnered with PoP to implement a reusable cloth pad-making program in the Zona Reina region of Guatemala. The project will teach PoP staff and local teachers how to make reusable pads with cloth and sewing kits. Teachers will then work with their students, both boys and girls, to create reusable pads. Students will be able to create their own pads, which will help them manage their periods.

The project will serve an estimate of 600 students in two schools and provide training to them, as well as 30 teachers, on how to use the reusable pads. Our collective goal is that this reusable cloth pad-making program will expand to different schools in the community and create sustainable social change by increasing access to menstrual hygiene products.

Photography by Nick Onken

Sierra Leone Rising is an organization dedicated to fostering quality education, supporting girls’ empowerment, and ensuring public health in Sierra Leone. In 2017, Sierra Leone Rising conducted a survey which revealed that 24% of girls were absent from schools within Bumpe Ngao Chiefdom because of inconveniences during their menstrual periods. The Pad Project has partnered with Sierra Leone Rising to provide reusable sanitary pads for 250 women, training for self-stitching skills, and educational workshops on menstrual management hosted by Sierra Leone Rising.

Located in Los Angeles, Alexandria House provides safe and supportive housing for women and children in the process of moving from emergency shelter to economic stability and permanent housing. Alexandria House receives over 1,000 calls per month and provides food, clothing, hygiene products, and referral services to women seeking emergency shelter. In February 2021, The Pad Project and This is L. provided a $4,500 grant to Alexandria House to purchase bulk menstrual supplies to support the menstrual health of its residents. With this grant, Alexandria House will be able to support 62 menstruators for one year by purchasing and distributing 29,450 total pads.

"Periods don’t stop during pandemics” - said Dana Marlowe, Founder and Executive Director of I Support the Girls (ISTG). ISTG is a nonprofit that collects and distributes essential items, including bras, underwear, and menstrual hygiene products to women and folx experiencing homelessness, impoverishment, or distress. In February 2021, The Pad Project and This is L. provided a $10,000 grant to ISTG. This grant will allow ISTG to distribute more than 183,000 menstrual products to homeless shelters, day shelters, youth shelters, schools, youth programs, hospitals and clinics, LGBTQIA organizations, organizations serving immigrants and refugees, Native American reservations, and more.

No More Secrets Mind Body Spirit Inc. is a nonprofit whose mission is to decrease stigmas, silence, and secrecy by increasing self-esteem, socialization, and self-love. They provide consultation services, facilitate trauma informed comprehensive programming, and provide educational trainings and workshops. No More Secrets Mind Body Spirit has created the only menstrual hygiene bank and in-home delivery service in Philadelphia to end period poverty in their community. They serve PA, NJ, and DE, and they ship nationwide to people in need. In February 2021, The Pad Project and This is L. provided No More Secrets Mind Body Spirit with a $4,500 grant to purchase and distribute 6,300 pads to the people they serve.

The Arka Initiative, located in Sri Lanka, provides tangible and practical support to men, women, and young people on issues pertaining to sexual and reproductive health. Arka works at an institutional and grassroots level to distribute reusable pads to underserved women in rural communities, provide comprehensive sex education to children and young people, create safe spaces for conversation, and act as a catalyst for increased menstrual health management (MHM) in communities. One workshop attendee said, “We corrected many misconceptions… Truly we haven't spoken so openly before. I feel happy and now I feel like we can even educate others.” The Pad Project and This is L. have provided a grant to Arka to run MHM workshops and to place a semi-automated pad machine in Pareigama, Sri Lanka. The semi-automated pad machine will employ 9 women and 1 supervisor and provide pads for 1,500 to 2,000 women and girls in the first year. The program will also include 12 MHM workshops in local schools, maternity clinics, and other local government institutions, with 150 to 200 women per session.

Desai Foundation is a nonprofit whose mission is to empower women and children through community programs to elevate health and livelihood in India and the U.S. In 2014, Desai Foundation began implementing the Asani Sanitary Napkin program to improve access to quality menstrual products and increase awareness of menstrual health management (MHM) in rural India. The program produces and distributes 1 million pads per year, and so far it has provided sanitary products and MHM workshops to over 40,000 women. The program has also provided livelihoods to over 40 women in 4 production units and to approximately 250 distributors per region. One woman says, “This project has affected [the] lives of many young girls, who now attend schools even during their menstrual cycles.” The Pad Project and This is L. have provided a grant to Desai Foundation to support pad distribution and increase MHM awareness. The goal is to promote women’s health while creating livelihood opportunities for women that allow them to play a financial role within their households.

The Inua Dada Foundation is a nonprofit organization based in Nairobi, Kenya whose mission is to provide sustainable solutions that will improve the well being of the girl-child by working collaboratively with partners. They provide menstrual health management programming and basic hygiene products to girls in low-income primary schools across Kenya.

The Pad Project is partnering with the Inua Dada Foundation to place a manual pad machine in Nairobi County. The project, funded by our official period care partner This is L., aims to promote period equity by providing safe, affordable, and accessible menstrual hygiene products to women and girls. The pad machine will employ 5-6 women to produce and sell quality sanitary pads at affordable prices.

One of the women who will be working on the machine says, “It's so difficult trying to manage my menstruation. I'm 22 with an 8 month-old baby, I don't have any consistent income stream and I can barely afford food and diapers, let alone pads. Women and girls need quality and safe menstrual management materials to manage their menstrual periods with dignity and pride.”

During the first year, the project will provide sanitary menstrual products and menstrual hygiene management workshops for approximately 8,000 individuals.

Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation (KSCF) is a nonprofit in Rajasthan, India that envisions a world where every child is free, safe, healthy and educated. Their mission is to eradicate child labor and child exploitation, to engage the private sector to prioritize children in their business models, to build capacity of partners on the ground, and to advocate for the protection of children in national and international policies. The Pad Project and This is L. have provided a grant to KSCF to purchase a semi-automated pad machine and run menstrual hygiene management (MHM) workshops.This project is intended to help girls manage their periods and continue their education. The pad machine will employ 9 women and 1 supervisor, and in the first year, it will serve 1,200 girls. The program will also include 12 MHM workshops, with 100 girls in each workshop.

MicroX Foundation (also known as SumArth) is a nonprofit social enterprise in Bihar, India dedicated to supporting farmers and women in their economic growth by providing 360 degree solutions for livelihood challenges and public health issues. Their mission is to ensure sustainable livelihoods for rural communities, promote enterprise-led development, and provide end-to-end support to agrarian communities. The Pad Project and This is L. have provided a grant to MicroX Foundation to purchase a manual pad machine, train women to run the enterprise, market the pads, and provide menstrual health management (MHM) education. This program is designed to increase access to menstrual products and MHM education, improve girls’ self-esteem and comfort, and create a women-owned, self-sustaining enterprise. The program will serve approximately 500 girls and women in the first year and will host 20 MHM workshops in local schools. Because of pandemic restrictions, MicroX Foundation has conducted Focused Group Discussions, as opposed to larger MHM workshops, in at least 8 villages for over 250 women and girls, including teachers and primary healthcare workers.

The Women’s Foundation Nepal (WFN) is a nonprofit dedicated to educating women on their rights, promoting gender equality, eliminating gender-biased laws, and advocating for equal gender participation in government and society. WFN provides a safe shelter for women and children and gives them medical, psychological, and legal assistance. The Pad Project and This is L. have provided a grant to WFN to purchase a manual pad machine and run menstrual hygiene management (MHM) workshops. The project will serve 300 women and girls in the first year, employ 5 women and 1 supervisor to work on the machine, and run 4 MHM workshops for a total of 100 girls.

Ahadi Reusable Pads is a social enterprise located in Kenya whose mission is to increase women’s dignity, improve girls’ self-esteem and comfort, provide affordable and long-lasting period protection, and give high quality pads to women and girls. In Kiswahili, “Ahadi” means “promise,” and it’s Ahadi’s promise that women and girls will fulfill their destiny by maximizing their potential through education. The Pad Project and This is L. have provided a grant to Ahadi to expand their washable pad program and run menstrual hygiene management (MHM) workshops. In the first year, the program will employ 8 women, serve 300 women and girls from 7 schools, and provide 3 MHM workshops. So far they have distributed 105 packs of reusable pads and held MHM workshops for almost 200 participants!

Days for Girls International is an award-winning NGO that works to shatter stigma and limitations associated with menstruation for improved health, education, and livelihoods. Through their Education & Access to Menstrual Products Strategy, Days for Girls (DfG) provides a holistic menstrual health education curriculum and increases women and girls’ access to menstrual products. Through their Policy & Advocacy Strategy, DfG educates and builds connections with national and international policymakers, coalitions, and organizations who can advance, accelerate and amplify the importance of menstrual health in improving education and livelihood outcomes for women and girls. To date, DfG has reached more than 1.7 million women and girls in 144 countries on 6 continents with quality, sustainable menstrual care solutions, and health education. The Pad Project and This is L. are providing a grant to support the distribution of 7,000 period kits and help Days for Girls International deliver 100 menstrual health education workshops in Malawi, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Lebanon, and South Africa.

In Malawi, DfG has partnered with Chief Theresa Kachindamoto, a world leader in preventing early child marriage, to support the distribution of period kits and the implementation of menstrual health management workshops. All pads will be made by local enterprise leaders in Malawi. In Zimbabwe, DfG is working with local enterprise leaders to provide period kits and menstrual hygiene education to 500 girls and women. In Lebanon, local DfG leaders are distributing period kits to Lebanese and Syrian refugees to combat the recent 500% price increase in menstrual products, which have been exacerbated by COVID-19 and the Beirut explosions. In Uganda, DfG is working with local leaders to provide period kits to female prisoners who have had no access to menstrual products since COVID shut down their supply.

Pencils of Promise (PoP) is a 501(c)(3) for-purpose organization that believes every child deserves access to quality education. They work to build schools, design programs, and partner with global communities to ensure education for all. Through collaborations with government agencies and local institutions, PoP is able to support teachers with literacy training, deliver innovative resources, and provide Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programming.

The Pad Project and Pencils of Promise are excited to partner to reach more students enrolled in PoP’s reusable cloth pad-making program across schools in Ghana. This project will educate local teachers and students – of all genders – on how to create reusable pads with cloth and sewing kits, then equip them with skills to practice healthy menstrual hygiene management.

This partnership will serve an estimated 800 students throughout small, rural communities in Ghana. Our collective goal is to offer direct services related to menstrual hygiene management through our reusable cloth pad-making program. We hope to expand this initiative across PoP schools in the community and create sustainable social change by increasing access to menstrual hygiene products and education. So far, approximately 2,385 washable pads have been produced, serving 795 menstruators. Unfortunately, because of COVID-19 restrictions, PoP has not yet been able to resume their MHM programming.

Plan for the Villages - Uganda is a nonprofit located in the Lira District of Uganda whose mission is to work with communities to enhance self-sustainability, health, education, livelihoods, and social wellbeing. Their project, I Am A Girl, focuses on producing reusable sanitary pads and providing menstrual health education to help girls stay in school. Awor Cindy, a tailoring instructor at Plan for the Villages - Uganda, says, “even as a young woman, I was VERY AWARE that the game plan here was secrecy and concealment and I obediently complied. … I love using reusable sanitary pads which have turned out to [be] a key to reconnecting me with my body in a healthy and natural way.” The Pad Project and This is L. are providing a grant to Plan for the Villages - Uganda to boost production of reusable cloth pads and increase the accessibility of menstrual products in rural communities. The goal is to increase student retention and have a positive, long-term impact on girls’ livelihoods and community development. This program will serve approximately 3,000 women and girls and 12 primary schools, support 16 villages, and host 10 menstrual hygiene management workshops. So far, Plan for the Villages - Uganda has hosted 6 MHM workshops for a total of 450 participants and produced 2,097 washable pads for 750 beneficiaries.

Sierra Leone Rising (SLR), located in Bumpe, Sierra Leone, is a nonprofit that seeks to build and maintain healthy, resourceful communities where individuals empower themselves through leadership and collaboration. SLR supports quality education, fosters girls’ and women’s empowerment, and ensures public health and safety. SLR was founded by Joseph Hindogbae Kposowa, a Barrister & Solicitor of the High Court of Sierra Leone, who is involved in collaborative global programs that foster peace, education, women’s empowerment, and public health. To further SLR’s mission, The Pad Project provided a grant in 2019 to fund the implementation of a reusable cloth pad-making program, training for self-stitching skills, and menstrual hygiene management workshops. This program produces inexpensive and environmentally friendly washable pads, allowing girls to attend school with more confidence and fewer distractions during their period. Isata George, a student in Sierra Leone, said, “before the emergence and distribution of washable pads to us, we find it difficult to go to school. … Now, we hardly miss school during our period and our uniforms no longer get stained with period blood.” In June 2020, The Pad Project partnered with This is L. to continue funding the reusable cloth pad-making program and expand its impact to reach 250 women and girls in one year. So far, SLR has hosted 12 MHM workshops for a total of 700 participants and distributed 3,250 washable pads.

Uzima Healthcare is a reusable sanitary pad and women’s health social enterprise based in Nairobi, Kenya. Uzima Healthcare is collaborating with local artists to design effective and funky visuals in communities to support sustainable messaging around women’s health. The Pad Project has partnered with Uzima Healthcare to support the production and distribution of washable pads and the implementation of menstrual hygiene management workshops. Although these workshops will mostly benefit women in the community, male community members will be invited to join for sections of the workshops.

Contact Uzima Healthcare at uzimahealthcarekenya@gmail.com or call +254 (0) 714 950 928 to learn more.

NinetyEight is a culturally-driven strategic impact consultancy built by and for Gen-Z. Our services include branding, social media management, Gen-Z research + insights, and influencer marketing. As curious digital natives, we’re self-taught and fluent in social media: from platforms to trends, content creation, and more. As strategists by trade, every piece of creative work we make is grounded by original (and sometimes unconventional) insights.
As a Gen-Z agency, we wanted to make sure we did business "for good." Alongside starting our company, we started a project called "Hygiene U Give" or "H.U.G." which aims to provide menstrual care products to underserved communities in LA. Since starting H.U.G. last year, we have donated over 600 hygiene kits to South Central LA. We are proud to partner with The Pad Project to continue fighting for period equality.

Equal Period is a youth-run organization based in California. Their mission is to eradicate period poverty by distributing period products to menstruators in need across the United States. Equal Period sees access to menstrual care products as a human right, not a luxury. Together, The Pad Project and Equal Period plan to distribute 150-200 boxes of menstrual products every month!

GØØDZ is an online pop-up store featuring handmade products created by an international coalition of women. GØØDZ serves as a platform to discover new artists and designers. The organization seeks to empower women through a two-pronged approach. It supports young female artists in their creative and entrepreneurial endeavors, while also championing the fight against period poverty. As partners with The Pad Project, GØØDZ helps give menstrual products to girls, women and other menstruators who otherwise could not afford them. To date, GØØDZ has donated funding for over 30,000 pads and hopes to continue raising awareness for this cause while simultaneously aiding menstruators in need in the United States.

As of April 2020, The Pad Project has partnered with Lulu Lab, a humanitarian game studio that uses educational games and quizzes to discuss taboo topics like menstrual hygiene and sexual health and rights. Lulu Lab has been acknowledged by UNESCO, recently won British Council’s global innovation challenge #IdeasChangeLives, and has more than 2 years of experience co-designing and developing digital solutions and educational games with and for vulnerable children, adolescents, religious leaders, rural communities, and NGOs. The Pad Project is partnering with Lulu Lab to create a pilot impact study of our partnership with Sierra Leone Rising. An impact study will help us assess and understand the level of impact that the reusable cloth pad-making program has made in the lives of the users - e.g. improvement in day-to-day lives, increase in school attendance, decrease in menstrual stigma.

Our Hummingway was co-founded by Ashley Greene Khoury and Olivia Khoury and is dedicated to providing people with the knowledge, tools, and community that enables them to take their health into their own hands and uncover the way to Whole Cycle Wellness™. Hummingway created the Cycle Soother, a patch to ease menstrual pain, and some of the proceeds have gone towards growing The Pad Project’s U.S. programs!

The Period Company was founded in 2020 by renowned celebrity stylist Karla Welch and renowned creative director Sasha Markova. Their mission is to change the way the world periods - and they’re doing that with Period underwear - the world’s most affordable, sustainable, safe, super absorbent and comfortable period underwear.

Over 4 billion tonnes of garbage are produced yearly in the US alone from disposable period products. The Period Company’s underwear and pads are non-disposable, last for years, and are completely free of PFAS toxins.

In 2021, periods should not be a barrier to anyone. The Pad Project is excited to be teaming up with The Period Company, who will be our official sustainable period product, and together, we’re working to eliminate period poverty in the U.S.