To coincide with International Menstrual Health Day (Tuesday 28 May), South Australia’s Commissioner for Children and Young People, Helen Connolly, is pleased to announce recipients of her 2024 Period Justice grants.
Sports clubs, arts organisations, community groups and local councils across South Australia are amongst the grant recipients being supported to deliver essential menstrual education and/or to supply free period products to benefit SA children and young people across the state.
In Mount Barker a proportion of grant funds will be used to support an artist to create a portable mural on themes of period poverty and menstruation. The artwork will be strategically positioned in high-traffic areas across the Mount Barker District to raise awareness and ‘spark meaningful dialogues’ across the community.
The African Women’s Federation of SA will be funded to build on their work of raising awareness amongst African communities via their ‘Resonating Voices: Empowering Young African Women and Families’ initiative, which seeks to remove period stigma by making activities and education workshops fun and geared toward discussion and taboo breaking.
SHINE SA will use their grant funding to provide sustainable period products and menstruation information at ‘Tarpari Wellbeing Day’ in Port Pirie. They will also adapt their Menstrual Health Kit to make it more accessible to Aboriginal children and young people, and available through schools and community health care centres.
Port Adelaide Netball association will use their grant funds to provide education kits and hold a menstruation awareness game night. Swimming SA will provide high quality education for the swimming community working in conjunction with Pelvic Pain Australia to deliver tailored workshops to coaches as well as swimmers.
The Town of Gawler will partner with TABOO to deliver a Period Products Provision Trial that includes an online period poverty awareness workshop. They will also produce information on where young people in Gawler can access free menstrual hygiene products including Gawler’s youth space, the local library, the tertiary hub, heritage centre, council café and business innovation hub.
Volleyball SA will roll out their education program ‘Game Changing. Period’. Working in conjunction with the Pelvic Pain Foundation of Australia to educate coaches and players around period justice issues, they will be purchasing sanitary pads and tampons to be added to equipment boxes located on site at all SA volleyball venues.
This is the third year the Commissioner has provided grant funding for period justice education, hygiene products and disposal infrastructure.
The Commissioner devised the funding program after many conversations with children and young people revealed the scale of the issue, and the seriousness of the stigma and taboo young people are experiencing.
Background
In her report, Menstruation Matters (2021), the Commissioner identified menstruation as having a wide-ranging impact on young people’s wellbeing, affecting school attendance, involvement in sport, capacity to work, and ability to socialise.
In 2021, the Commissioner launched endperiodpoverty.com – a website designed to raise awareness and promote action on period poverty. In June, that year she hosted the first National Period Summit with over 100 representatives from organisations around Australia attending in-person and online. In 2023, she held the first Youth Period Summit attracting 70 young people who are passionate about menstrual health and period justice. The second Youth Period Summit is set for September 2024.
As momentum for period justice has built around the world the Commissioner relaunched her end period poverty website as periodjustice.com.au reflecting the need to address the full range of issues around periods and menstruation. Providing a central point of access for resources, information and activities the site contains links to over 250 resources curated into collections around self-help, menstrual health, research and policy, education and teaching.
Quotes attributable to Commissioner Helen Connolly:
I am pleased to be able to continue to fund worthwhile period justice projects and activities across the SA community. Funding focused on reducing stigma and taboo around periods and menstruation, as well as providing essential period hygiene products for those who need them, will have a positive impact on children and young people’s lives. No-one should be made to feel embarrassed or ashamed in relation to periods and menstruation. We all need to continue to do all we can to address this issue for the health and wellbeing of the whole community.
It is important that periods and menstruation are normalised so that no child or young person is made to feel shame or embarrassment at what is a basic bodily function. The only way South Australia can hope to put an end to period stigma and taboo is to tackle menstrual ignorance and period poverty head on. Adults need to continue to offer support through services and projects that ensure schools, community organisations, sports clubs, and other places where young people gather, provide quality information and support, as well as free access to products whenever they need them, thereby helping to normalise periods and menstruation at every turn.
Visit https://periodjustice.com.au
Media Contact: Sharon Cleary | Senior External Relations & Communications Adviser
M: 0407 990 983 | E: sharon.cleary@sa.gov.au
