Pad for Pad connects our customers and adolescent girls in India through the shared experience of menstruation, respect for our bodies, and love for the earth. When women and girls around the world choose to use our cloth pads, their purchase ensures that other girls, who might not otherwise be able to, get to access clean, alternative menstrual products and answers to their questions. It’s an idea we like to call ‘eco-sisterhood.’
We started Pad for Pad because we saw that many women and girls in our area of Tamil Nadu have a lot of unanswered questions about their bodies and the menstrual cycle, mostly because menstruation is a topic not openly talked about. This observed need for safe learning spaces and the growing challenge of dealing with sanitary waste across India inspired us to replace silence with conversation and action.
Since 2013 we have been partnering with government schools in Tamil Nadu and organisations across India to bring the Pad for Pad programme to girls from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
Get a more in-depth perspective into the programme here.
The Pad for Pad sessions are designed to give girls the skills to manage their periods hygienically and with dignity, and the chance to relate to menstruation as a normal, healthy experience. It is often the first chance girls have ever had to ask questions and express their curiosity about menstruation.
The topics covered during this session as are follows:
We have created a standardised 3 hour curriculum for introducing adolescent girls to menstruation in a classroom setting.
This curriculum has been formatted into a user friendly facilitators guide
Pad for Pad Kit includes: 4 pads (Eco Femme Day Pad Plus or option of Foldable pads if preferred ) made from cotton flannel and with a leak proof layer; a travel/storage pouch; and instruction leaflet (available in Hindi and Tamil). Colour and pattern of pads and pouch may vary from that shown in the image.
We can also offer an option for providing materials for girls to self stitch an additional pad under this programme – an activity that girls love and feel proud of!
We include a contribution in the price of our internationally sold pads – 95 INR per pad; this money covers the cost of facilitation and educational materials for our sessions and allow us to offer 4 of our washable cloth pads and a carry pouch as a free choice (In India the 95 INR is not included in the price; customers can choose to add a pad purchase for a rural girl when they buy pads or contribute independently).
Watch our video to learn more about this programme and how it works:
As of 31st March 2020 we have reached over 44,000 girls across India and 177,000 pads have been freely gifted as a result of your donations! THANK YOU!
Year 1 (2013-14) |
Year 2 (2014-15) |
Year 3 (2015-16) |
Year 4 (2016-17) |
Year 5 (2017-18) |
Year 6 (2018-19) |
Year 7 (2019-20) |
Target
Year 8 (2020-21) |
||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of girls receiving kits | 688 | 1,740 | 3,650 | 6,539 | 8,142 | 10,426 | 13,064 | 13,000 | |
Number of pads distributed | 2762 | 6960 | 13,676 | 26,156 | 32,144 | 41,204 | 52,100 | 52,000 | |
Number of educational sessions (direct & with partners) | 32 | 64 | 111 | 223 | 266 | 335 | 419 | 430 | |
Donations received (in INR) | 4,79,155 | 8,67,942 | 13,79,255 | 17,11,607 | 24,60,558 | 35,98,649 | 48,72,220 | 49,40,000 |
In addition to the contributions that are built into our international sales we are happy to receive support from individuals around the world; your donations will go to covering the facilitation cost of sessions, Pad for Pad kits, and any training or support our implementation partners might need – all allowing an adolescent girl the chance to make informed choices and speak openly about menstruation in a safe context.
You can make donations by following the instructions below and clicking ‘Donate Now’.
Yes! We work with implementation partners and organisations across India to spread menstrual health education and washable cloth pads for free.
You can see who we are currently partnered with at the bottom of this page.
If you are interested in being an implementation partner click here to learn more about our partnership requirements.
We take evaluation very seriously in order to measure the impact of our educational outreach work. 3 months after a Pad for Pad session, we return to check on how the girls have adapted to using cloth pads and monitor the learning and behaviour changes that occurred as a result of the menstrual health educational session.
We also periodically conduct indepth interviews with a sample set of girls to gain deeper insight into how the session impacted them – whether they learned and adopted healthy menstrual practices and have acquired the confidence and personal skills to speak about menstruation and share their knowledge with peers.
We ask all our Pad for Pad implementation partners to also undertake programme evaluation.
We regularly prepare reports on the progress of the Pad for Pad programme. Please click on links below to learn more about the progress towards our targets and the impact this programme is making.
Don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter by providing your email address in the box at the bottom of the page!
Our thanks to our implementation partners for helping us to reach more girls around India.
Thanks to the following individuals also working with us through Pad for Pad – your support & dedication is truly appreciated:
Thanks also to Two Rags – a socially minded giveback partner who supports the pad for pad program by enabling their own socially-conscious customers to be the driving force in empowering girls through their purchases.
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