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3. May 2019
4. What if you had to make your own sanitary pads?

By gathering people together to design and make their own sanitary pads, Design for Dignity explores what it means to be a woman living without access to essential feminine hygiene.

Design for Dignity is an event organised in the lead-up to Menstrual Hygiene Day to raise awareness of the challenges faced by women and girls in refugee camps around managing their period.

We asked each person to bring an old piece of clothing with them on the night. There were a lot of surprised reactions when people found out they would be using it to make their own sanitary pad!
  In emergency situations, feminine hygiene is often overlooked. Many women and girls don’t have access to basic hygiene - like sanitary pads, clean underwear and soap.  

Making pads using old clothing highlights the fact that without access to sanitary pads, women and girls in camps are forced to resort to using rags or other unsafe materials when they bleed. This not only leads to shame and embarrassment, but is unhygienic and can cause infection.
  Periods is a topic that still makes many people uncomfortable. Sitting down together with fabric, glue and scissors helped to open up the conversation surrounding menstruation and the challenges women and girls in refugee camps face every day to maintaining their dignity.