The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) states that one in every 10 girls in Africa misses school while on her period. These young women not have the proper feminine products to continue with their everyday life while on their periods, so designer Diana Sierra is working to change this statistic, one pair of underwear at a time.
Sierra was completing an internship in Uganda for her Master’s degree at Columbia University a few years back. While leading workshops for older women, she learned that young girls were not attending school due to menstruation. As a designer, she knew her way around fabrics and began to think of a solution to get girls back in school.
After working on the project and creating several prototypes, she had created the Be Girl pad. There are two different products available through this line. One is the FlexiPad that is reusable and washable. The girls are able to take any absorbent material and stuff the inside of the pad. The other product is the PeriodPanty. Absorbent material is stuffed in this underwear as well. Sierra is working hard to help keep girls in school and get the education that they deserve, and we commend her for her efforts.
Cover image courtesy of Diana Sierra.
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