Sure, I can't even help but have terrible flashes to the movie "Hotel Rwanda" when I walk by a farmer with a machete in hand. But Rwanda is a different place than it was in 1994 both in aesthetics, but also mentality. Although I can't transport you there, here's a quick video to give a little sense of the place SHE is piloting its first franchise.
It All Comes Down to Politics
11:23 am December 7, 2008
Kigali, Rwanda
After two years of political saturation from Barack, John, and Hillary, I thought Rwanda would provide a peaceful respite. I thought wrong. Since I have been here, politics are seemingly omnipresent. Here are two major stories:
THE BARACK EFFECT: If it wasn’t clear to you before, it certainly should be now. Rwanda, and probably all of Africa, is a vote that Barack Obama would surely get. Our R&D collaborator Professor Akeng’a (who is Kenyan) is a fan and so is everyone with whom I have talked. Though the excitement is high, the sobering reality that he has a lot of challenges ahead is also known.
LET KABUYE GO: With demonstrations called for almost every week, the people of Rwanda are demanding Kabuye to be released.
Who is she? Good question. Before last week I had not heard of her, but thousands of Rwandans heading to the streets remind me. In short, Kabuye is one of nine senior officials wanted over the shooting down of former President Juvenal Habyarimana's plane. His murder is widely seen as the spark that led to the deaths of some 800,000 people in Rwanda. Check out the view from the BBC and the local Rwandan newspaper.
People are Watching
2:50pm December 6, 2008
KIST Campus, Building 2, Kigali, Rwanda
“Women are the agents of change.”
-Ambassador Joy at the annual conference for the Rwandan Association of University Women (RAUW)
As a dangerously over-educated person (as Karen Leahey calls me), I couldn’t be happier sitting among the RAUW members today. There was Dinah from AGASEKE, Sarah Ingabire from FAWE, Angelina from the Rwanda Public Service Commission, and Shirley Randall of, well, the world! While each of the women pursue different paths, each is equally impressive and equally value education.
Today, RAUW held its annual conference where we discussed, among other things, the need to deliver, that is improve the lives of women given the opportunities available. Ambassador Joy brought this message home, as did Hon Juliana Kanengwa who is a member of the Pan African Parliament, and Senator Beatrice. What opportunities exist? Well, Rwanda has the largest percentage of women in Parliament (governing body) in the world at 56%. While this might not reflect the gender dynamic in rural areas, the presence of women in leadership presents an opportunity to shape the policies at the government level which will eventually affect the individual dynamics in rural and urban environments in Rwanda. And let’s not stop there, it presents the opportunity to affect the world. As Ambassador Joy aptly said today, “people are watching.” And frankly, they should.
KIST Campus, Building 2, Kigali, Rwanda
“Women are the agents of change.”
-Ambassador Joy at the annual conference for the Rwandan Association of University Women (RAUW)
As a dangerously over-educated person (as Karen Leahey calls me), I couldn’t be happier sitting among the RAUW members today. There was Dinah from AGASEKE, Sarah Ingabire from FAWE, Angelina from the Rwanda Public Service Commission, and Shirley Randall of, well, the world! While each of the women pursue different paths, each is equally impressive and equally value education.
Today, RAUW held its annual conference where we discussed, among other things, the need to deliver, that is improve the lives of women given the opportunities available. Ambassador Joy brought this message home, as did Hon Juliana Kanengwa who is a member of the Pan African Parliament, and Senator Beatrice. What opportunities exist? Well, Rwanda has the largest percentage of women in Parliament (governing body) in the world at 56%. While this might not reflect the gender dynamic in rural areas, the presence of women in leadership presents an opportunity to shape the policies at the government level which will eventually affect the individual dynamics in rural and urban environments in Rwanda. And let’s not stop there, it presents the opportunity to affect the world. As Ambassador Joy aptly said today, “people are watching.” And frankly, they should.
The Times Are A Changin’?
2:56 pm December 4, 2008
Café Toseros
Kigali, Rwanda
So here I am, back in Kigali again. This time I am solo, without my SHE crew of Bernice, Hannah B, and Hannah P. It’s going to be tough pulling off what we did this summer—surveying 500+ girls/women, identifying potential partners, and R&D collaborators—but what’s more, it’s going to be tough having as much fun without them!
Four months later, I find some things have changed in Rwanda….like the new swank shopping center…or 12,000 Rfw ($23) cell phone. Rwanda is forging ahead into capitalism with, literally, lines out the door. Unfortunately, some things haven’t changed…like the 800-900 Rfw (~$1.50) packs of sanitary pads (10 per pack).
My time here is relatively short, but my task list is mighty long and fierce. I’ll be whipping around Rwanda to (among other things) kick-off R&D collaboration with the fabulous Professor Akeng’a at KIST (the Rwandan Technical Univerisity), or shall we say the MIT of Africa. Or is MIT, the KIST of the United States? Also, I’ll be scoping out potential pilot partners, sourcing some natural fibers, and attending the Rwandan University Women’s Association annual conference. What would I rather be doing? Why, nothing else.
The Mule
4:00 pm December 1, 2008
New York, NY
There are 1.8 million government employees in the United States and it feels like I talked to about 75% of them today! In preparation for my upcoming trip to Rwanda, I needed to find out if I could bring plant-derived materials back into the country for our experiments in the US. You know the signs, the warnings at JFK, LAX, and Tijuana alike. They are the leaflets and signage that prohibit you from taking a bite of that juicy and delicious variety of Chinese apple or Ecuadorian orange. “No plants, soils, animals can enter US territory.” Rather than do the ole sneaky thing, I am trying to figure out the channels to import the materials—the fibers, the pulp, etc. Overall, everyone at the Soil & Conservation Department, the JFK Port Department, the Bronx gynecologist’s office (wrong number), APHIS, CBP, and the USDA (especially Denise) has been very kind. Let’s see if I get any phone calls or emails with the correct verdict soon!
How long is that Plum Book President-elect Obama?
You are nuts! Errr, uhh, bananas!
Sometime in September, 2008
Cambridge, Massachusetts
“Elizabeth, I got the package and put aside til you arrive in Cambridge. It’s huge. What is it? A tree or something!?!? Ha!” --Carrie Fitz, close college friend living in Boston
I’d think you were nuts if you asked me just one year ago if I would be opening up a big FedEx box packed carefully with a banana tree trunk cut in 6 pieces. But this, in fact, is the latest development in the SHE Team’s quest to produce a low-cost sanitary pad for girls and women in developing countries. Compliments of the fantastic and generous DON CHAFIN and his Florida-based nursery with exotic banana varieties, GOING BANANAS (www.going-bananas.com), that nutty but necessary idea recently became a reality. After all, that tree in Rwanda didn’t fit in my suitcase!
The SHE Team didn’t waste any time in putting the banana tree to work with stops at MIT, one of the top universities, and IDEO, one of the top product design companies in the world. With tree in hand, the SHE Team set up shop outside the MIT Student Center where we began to extract the banana fibers and pulp from the trunk or stem, the first step in preparing the potential local raw material for a pad. MIT students are curious enough, but we were a showstopper being 3 women with machetes taking to a giant tree trunk with a pile of bananas beside us. The purpose of our “show” was to recruit new students to be involved in the MIT SHE Club and to prepare materials for our next stop at IDEO.
And with fiber and pulp in hand just 2 days later, we made our way to IDEO where we brainstormed with a group of talented engineers for a couple of hours. So, did we come up with all the answers? Actually, like any good brainstorming session, we came up with more questions! Putting all conventional pad connotations aside, we came up with a plethora of new questions, ideas, and experiments around product design, packaging, etc,…for which, I’m sure you will be swinging from your banana tree house to read about in upcoming blogging!
wdydwyd?
Midnight, September 22, 2008
New York, NY
(energy channeled from Durham, North Carolina)
Why do you do what you do? It’s the question posed to me and the 18 other Echoing Green fellows (by entrepreneur Tony Deifell: http://www.wdydwyd.com) recently at our indoctrination retreat at Duke University. It’s a simple question, but without a simple answer. Of course, our task was to make it simple. Simple enough to fit on an 8x10 inch card and sport a face looking like we really mean it. “Show me sincerity! Show me depth! Show me passion!” Considering 85% of all my snapshot poses are with my mouth gaping wide open, I had little in my repertoire to emulate such emotions. I went with squinty eyes and bad posture. You like?
New York, NY
(energy channeled from Durham, North Carolina)
Why do you do what you do? It’s the question posed to me and the 18 other Echoing Green fellows (by entrepreneur Tony Deifell: http://www.wdydwyd.com) recently at our indoctrination retreat at Duke University. It’s a simple question, but without a simple answer. Of course, our task was to make it simple. Simple enough to fit on an 8x10 inch card and sport a face looking like we really mean it. “Show me sincerity! Show me depth! Show me passion!” Considering 85% of all my snapshot poses are with my mouth gaping wide open, I had little in my repertoire to emulate such emotions. I went with squinty eyes and bad posture. You like?
As you can imagine, the responses were not for the shallow. From my new friend, Samah Salamie-Egbariya: “To give Arab women hope.” From my new friend Nathan Sigworth: “Because those who care should be empowered” (http://www.pharmasecure.us/). And from my friend, Priti Radhakrishnan: “Because they are still dying” (http://www.i-mak.org/). It sounds like a righteous roll call. I love it! But perhaps some of us do things for other reasons….perhaps for fun, perhaps because we are good at what we do. Is this so bad? Of course not.
I think the best surprising result of this questioning is that I reflected upon what I’m not doing. And so, I ask, “why am I not doing what I want to do?” And this doesn’t have to be a reflection on just work. In fact, very recently I reconnected with a special person in my life with whom I haven’t been in contact for over a month. It is this very type of reflection that made me reach out again. And I’m glad I did. And so I ask you, my blog participants (and that may only be mom and dad these days!), why do you do what you do? And why aren’t you doing what you want to do?
Batteries, I Mean Land Rover, Not Included
July 19, 2008
Kibungo, Rwanda
Let’s play the word association game…so when I say something you respond with whatever pops in your head. So for example, I say “Mickey” and you say “mouse.” I say “karaoke” and you say “Bon Jovi.” I say “industry” and you say “international development organizations”…..huh? What an oxymoron!…like jumbo shrimp or big NYC apartment or healthy cigarette (sorry American Spirits smokers) or chatroom party animal. Yet, there is something to this notion of the international development industry.
Despite its poverty, Kigali is not unlike other African capitals with a few posh neighbors lined with signs such as USAID, GTZ, Oxfam, etc. Locals walk along the roadside carting timber, bananas, and water jugs on their heads with mammoth four wheel drive vehicles blistering by with a logo of some international development agency blazoned across the side. This is the norm. It seems that international development organizations, often one of the biggest vehicles of money flow into a country such as Rwanda takes the place of individual and institutional investors in industries such as textiles, food processing, etc. It creates jobs like program officers and outreach specialists in organizations’ programs. It creates linkages to spark job creation in other arenas as well such as computer printer shops and gas stations (those Land Rovers need to fill up an awful lot!). So when locals, as they often do, suggest that we should “just put the driver on the phone when you need directions” or question, “how much money do you have?” we should not be taken aback, but rather take it in stride and acquiesce. Or should we?
Do we have a responsibility to change the norm? And should we want to?
Should we aim to change the mindset that outside development intervention symbolizes a dollar sign? Should we aim to change the idea that international development organizations are the main vehicle for economic growth? Don’t we increase chances for sustainable Rwandan growth without dependency on international development $$?
And by the way, we are a start-up enterprise, which is quite resourceful, but working on a shoestring budget. We walk or take public transport almost everywhere. Isn’t that how most entrepreneurs do it? If we had a garage, we’d be working in it right now.
Kibungo, Rwanda
Let’s play the word association game…so when I say something you respond with whatever pops in your head. So for example, I say “Mickey” and you say “mouse.” I say “karaoke” and you say “Bon Jovi.” I say “industry” and you say “international development organizations”…..huh? What an oxymoron!…like jumbo shrimp or big NYC apartment or healthy cigarette (sorry American Spirits smokers) or chatroom party animal. Yet, there is something to this notion of the international development industry.
Despite its poverty, Kigali is not unlike other African capitals with a few posh neighbors lined with signs such as USAID, GTZ, Oxfam, etc. Locals walk along the roadside carting timber, bananas, and water jugs on their heads with mammoth four wheel drive vehicles blistering by with a logo of some international development agency blazoned across the side. This is the norm. It seems that international development organizations, often one of the biggest vehicles of money flow into a country such as Rwanda takes the place of individual and institutional investors in industries such as textiles, food processing, etc. It creates jobs like program officers and outreach specialists in organizations’ programs. It creates linkages to spark job creation in other arenas as well such as computer printer shops and gas stations (those Land Rovers need to fill up an awful lot!). So when locals, as they often do, suggest that we should “just put the driver on the phone when you need directions” or question, “how much money do you have?” we should not be taken aback, but rather take it in stride and acquiesce. Or should we?
Do we have a responsibility to change the norm? And should we want to?
Should we aim to change the mindset that outside development intervention symbolizes a dollar sign? Should we aim to change the idea that international development organizations are the main vehicle for economic growth? Don’t we increase chances for sustainable Rwandan growth without dependency on international development $$?
And by the way, we are a start-up enterprise, which is quite resourceful, but working on a shoestring budget. We walk or take public transport almost everywhere. Isn’t that how most entrepreneurs do it? If we had a garage, we’d be working in it right now.
Banana Breakthrough
16:45 July 16, 2008
Kigali, Rwanda
If you asked me one month ago if I thought our journey to low-cost pad nirvana would take us to Japan, I think I’d bid you a sianora. But that, is exactly where we have ended up on the map, giving us our best technological lead so far.
A few days ago, we crashed an expert extravaganza (ie conference) on banana wilting—surprisingly a first in my book. The crash ended up to be quite fruitful (bad joke) as the expert we were aiming to meet, Svetlana, recommended we meet Yuri Mato, a Japanese environmental consultant in Rwanda, who was working on making textiles from bananas. Bingo! Kamikaze! Turns out, we have been climbing up the wrong tree (another bad joke) by talking with chemists, botanists and the like. In fact, Yuri relayed to us that it is the Tama ART University in Japan that has developed the technology to make cloth from banana fibers.
A machete and four banana stems later, the SHE team is extracting their very own fibers from freshly harvested banana trees. Once again, our kitchen and front porch have transformed into the SHE laboratories as we aim to process plant into absorbent material given the Tama Art University technique. Stay tuned for more breakthroughs!
Kigali, Rwanda
If you asked me one month ago if I thought our journey to low-cost pad nirvana would take us to Japan, I think I’d bid you a sianora. But that, is exactly where we have ended up on the map, giving us our best technological lead so far.
A few days ago, we crashed an expert extravaganza (ie conference) on banana wilting—surprisingly a first in my book. The crash ended up to be quite fruitful (bad joke) as the expert we were aiming to meet, Svetlana, recommended we meet Yuri Mato, a Japanese environmental consultant in Rwanda, who was working on making textiles from bananas. Bingo! Kamikaze! Turns out, we have been climbing up the wrong tree (another bad joke) by talking with chemists, botanists and the like. In fact, Yuri relayed to us that it is the Tama ART University in Japan that has developed the technology to make cloth from banana fibers.
A machete and four banana stems later, the SHE team is extracting their very own fibers from freshly harvested banana trees. Once again, our kitchen and front porch have transformed into the SHE laboratories as we aim to process plant into absorbent material given the Tama Art University technique. Stay tuned for more breakthroughs!
National Kite Day
18:35 July 13, 2008
Kibuye, Rwanda
There is not much for Rwanda, and other African countries in the region to celebrate because the change in political status from previously colonized, has not yet brought about release from dependence on former colonial powers and other rich countries.
--Rwandan President Kagame referring to the recent 4th of July Liberation Day celebration which also marked 46 years of Rwanda’s independence
You can see it everywhere…..Landrovers with an international development organization logo plastered on the side, $200 million donation headlines in the local newspaper, reams of 3rd hand US t-shirts filling the markets. All of this is evidence of Kagame’s sentiment. The question is, “Does Rwanda resemble a kite in a strong wind? Or an anchor on the sea floor?”
We’re betting on the kite. Rwandans are about to take off and be independent from other rich countries as long as their approach is market-based. Forget donations. They don’t work long-term. Market-based approaches do, so why leave them just for the business world in Europe or North America? And that’s why we’re in the business of setting up locally-owned businesses. Local women are going to own their own sanitary napkin businesses and as long as they are meeting customer demand, their ventures will be sustainable, mitigating a problem that has huge economic consequences.
Kibuye, Rwanda
There is not much for Rwanda, and other African countries in the region to celebrate because the change in political status from previously colonized, has not yet brought about release from dependence on former colonial powers and other rich countries.
--Rwandan President Kagame referring to the recent 4th of July Liberation Day celebration which also marked 46 years of Rwanda’s independence
You can see it everywhere…..Landrovers with an international development organization logo plastered on the side, $200 million donation headlines in the local newspaper, reams of 3rd hand US t-shirts filling the markets. All of this is evidence of Kagame’s sentiment. The question is, “Does Rwanda resemble a kite in a strong wind? Or an anchor on the sea floor?”
We’re betting on the kite. Rwandans are about to take off and be independent from other rich countries as long as their approach is market-based. Forget donations. They don’t work long-term. Market-based approaches do, so why leave them just for the business world in Europe or North America? And that’s why we’re in the business of setting up locally-owned businesses. Local women are going to own their own sanitary napkin businesses and as long as they are meeting customer demand, their ventures will be sustainable, mitigating a problem that has huge economic consequences.
Cell-phones, Motorbikes, Internet, and…
15:35 July 11, 2008
Kigali, Rwanda
There are some arenas in which developing countries have not followed the typical sequence of technology development. Take cell-phones for example. Instead of perpetuating the use of land-lines, some countries have jumped into cell-phone technology with cell-phones being a more common thing to find in someone’s hand than a Rwandan cup of coffee. Motorbikes are another example and are quite the rage here. It seems that people haven given up on traditional bikes and are either walking along side the road or hopping on the back of a moto to get to the pharmacie or papelerie. With the internet, countries can leap frog old school mail for communication. So, what is the jump in technology for sanitary pads? We’re ready for your suggestions!
Kigali, Rwanda
There are some arenas in which developing countries have not followed the typical sequence of technology development. Take cell-phones for example. Instead of perpetuating the use of land-lines, some countries have jumped into cell-phone technology with cell-phones being a more common thing to find in someone’s hand than a Rwandan cup of coffee. Motorbikes are another example and are quite the rage here. It seems that people haven given up on traditional bikes and are either walking along side the road or hopping on the back of a moto to get to the pharmacie or papelerie. With the internet, countries can leap frog old school mail for communication. So, what is the jump in technology for sanitary pads? We’re ready for your suggestions!
The Geek Summit
16:50 July 9, 2008
National University of Rwanda
Butare, Rwanda
You know how you sometimes wish you were a fly on the wall? Well today, we were those flies at the National University of Rwanda. Picture it…five older, esteemed Rwandan men: th
e Dean of Faculty of Agriculture, the Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology, the head of chemistry, biochemistry, and organic chemistry departments from the National University of Rwanda, the most highly regarded university in the country, all sitting in a circle and talking about menstruation. It was like a convention of master scientists, there were too many degrees in the room to count. Initially, the SHE Rwanda Team, which includes Hannah Brice of Cambridge University, Bernice Huang of MIT, and me, hopped on a matatu (local bus that resembles more of a carnival ride than safe transport) and journeyed two hours south to meet one professor, but very quickly we found ourselves whisked away to meet the highest academics in the land. One by one, they were beckoned for their expertise and one by one they entered the Dean’s office, were explained the project, had a little giggle and then got down to business. The business I am referring to is making an absorbent material out of bananas, papyrus, cassava, and/or rice.
One of the main components of this stint in Rwanda is to gauge the feasibility of producing a low cost sanitary napkin using local materials as the main input. This, my friends, is the greatest challenge we have addressed so far. Why is that? There are lots of plants around and we have a blender (which I can’t believe made it through security in 4 countries!). But alas, it isn’t as easy as your 6th grade science lab. Most pads (actually all) use cotton as their main material input. Unfortunately, cotton is not readily available in Rwanda and many other places this problem exists so we are looking to alternative raw materials which we’ve narrowed to bananas, papyrus, cassava, and rice with banana leaves and stems being our leading contender.
This trek today was important to us because it gave us insight into the existing research and the needed research to develop the affordable sanitary pad given the suggested raw materials. Unfortunately, despite all that experience and education in that room today, the research on making these raw materials into an absorbent material does not exist (that they know of), certainly not in Rwanda. It turns out WE are on the cutting edge of science.
So I beckon you, banana absorbency experts of the world, please give me a ring at 0369786. I promise, we won't drive you bananas!
National University of Rwanda
Butare, Rwanda
You know how you sometimes wish you were a fly on the wall? Well today, we were those flies at the National University of Rwanda. Picture it…five older, esteemed Rwandan men: th
e Dean of Faculty of Agriculture, the Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology, the head of chemistry, biochemistry, and organic chemistry departments from the National University of Rwanda, the most highly regarded university in the country, all sitting in a circle and talking about menstruation. It was like a convention of master scientists, there were too many degrees in the room to count. Initially, the SHE Rwanda Team, which includes Hannah Brice of Cambridge University, Bernice Huang of MIT, and me, hopped on a matatu (local bus that resembles more of a carnival ride than safe transport) and journeyed two hours south to meet one professor, but very quickly we found ourselves whisked away to meet the highest academics in the land. One by one, they were beckoned for their expertise and one by one they entered the Dean’s office, were explained the project, had a little giggle and then got down to business. The business I am referring to is making an absorbent material out of bananas, papyrus, cassava, and/or rice.One of the main components of this stint in Rwanda is to gauge the feasibility of producing a low cost sanitary napkin using local materials as the main input. This, my friends, is the greatest challenge we have addressed so far. Why is that? There are lots of plants around and we have a blender (which I can’t believe made it through security in 4 countries!). But alas, it isn’t as easy as your 6th grade science lab. Most pads (actually all) use cotton as their main material input. Unfortunately, cotton is not readily available in Rwanda and many other places this problem exists so we are looking to alternative raw materials which we’ve narrowed to bananas, papyrus, cassava, and rice with banana leaves and stems being our leading contender.
This trek today was important to us because it gave us insight into the existing research and the needed research to develop the affordable sanitary pad given the suggested raw materials. Unfortunately, despite all that experience and education in that room today, the research on making these raw materials into an absorbent material does not exist (that they know of), certainly not in Rwanda. It turns out WE are on the cutting edge of science.
So I beckon you, banana absorbency experts of the world, please give me a ring at 0369786. I promise, we won't drive you bananas!
Why All the Fuss?
17:45 July 4, 2008
Gitarama, Rwanda
While I like to think that the Scharpf shuffle is an appropriate dance move, there is no place for dancing around the heart of the issue of menstrual management. So, what is the problem we’re trying to address? Who cares that there aren’t any affordable, quality, eco-friendly, sanitary napkins? This has been the case for thousands of years. Why do something about it now?
Today was a serious day. Today is the 4th of July—a day that marks the United States’ independence, but also the Rwandan day of liberation, or the end of the genocide. And today is about choice…choices for Tutsis, Hutus, men, women, girls, and boys. Since 1994, the people of Rwanda have been re-building their country from the genocide that wiped out approximately 1 million people in their country. Let me say that again, 1 million people. And the most recent focus of this reconstruction is on ensuring choice and developing economic opportunities. And that, is exactly what SHE is about.
SHE is about choice. SHE is about sustainable economic development.
Without affordable, quality sanitary napkins, girls and women lose their opportunity to choose. Girls cannot choose whether or not they go to school 4-5 days per month, up to 50 days in a year. They are absent from school on these days. And without consistent school attendance, girls may lag in school performance, ultimately leading to more limited economic potential. Women cannot choose whether or not they go to work 4-5 days per month, up to 50 days in a year. They are absent from work on these days. And absenteeism may thwart their ability to secure well paying jobs. This phenomenon not only severely limits their income-generating potential, but also harms entire communities as females’ economic success improves familial welfare overall with 80 cents of every dollar earned going to the family.
By the way, we're not talking about this problem existing in one country or two. If you haven't noticed, girls and women are everywhere! There are 3.3 billion of us! And there is evidence of this problem all over the world. Think about the power of that human capital which could drive economic growth!
So, as you can see, the problem is about females’ limited choice and untapped economic growth. Why allow a simple issue like sanitary napkins be one of the obstacles to addressing these problems?
Gitarama, Rwanda
While I like to think that the Scharpf shuffle is an appropriate dance move, there is no place for dancing around the heart of the issue of menstrual management. So, what is the problem we’re trying to address? Who cares that there aren’t any affordable, quality, eco-friendly, sanitary napkins? This has been the case for thousands of years. Why do something about it now?
Today was a serious day. Today is the 4th of July—a day that marks the United States’ independence, but also the Rwandan day of liberation, or the end of the genocide. And today is about choice…choices for Tutsis, Hutus, men, women, girls, and boys. Since 1994, the people of Rwanda have been re-building their country from the genocide that wiped out approximately 1 million people in their country. Let me say that again, 1 million people. And the most recent focus of this reconstruction is on ensuring choice and developing economic opportunities. And that, is exactly what SHE is about.
SHE is about choice. SHE is about sustainable economic development.
Without affordable, quality sanitary napkins, girls and women lose their opportunity to choose. Girls cannot choose whether or not they go to school 4-5 days per month, up to 50 days in a year. They are absent from school on these days. And without consistent school attendance, girls may lag in school performance, ultimately leading to more limited economic potential. Women cannot choose whether or not they go to work 4-5 days per month, up to 50 days in a year. They are absent from work on these days. And absenteeism may thwart their ability to secure well paying jobs. This phenomenon not only severely limits their income-generating potential, but also harms entire communities as females’ economic success improves familial welfare overall with 80 cents of every dollar earned going to the family.
By the way, we're not talking about this problem existing in one country or two. If you haven't noticed, girls and women are everywhere! There are 3.3 billion of us! And there is evidence of this problem all over the world. Think about the power of that human capital which could drive economic growth!
So, as you can see, the problem is about females’ limited choice and untapped economic growth. Why allow a simple issue like sanitary napkins be one of the obstacles to addressing these problems?
We Are All The Same
22:10 June 30, 2008
Orphans of Rwanda Office
Kigali, Rwanda
While Bill Clinton may not be my favorite president and I may not be his favorite intern, one of his statements has stuck with me…..“Despite all of our differences around the world, we, as humans, are 99% the same.” I think the context of the speech was “so why don’t we put down our guns and have peace on earth.” But tonight, after an intense focus group with twenty-
somethings who are part of the organization Orphans From Rwanda, I’m going to apply the statement to menstruation. After all, I’m sure that’s what Bill was really getting at in that commencement speech, right?
One of the gals, LaJalia said today, “Sometimes I end up menstruating 6 or 7 days and because the sanitary pads are so expensive I end up using a pad for longer than I probably should. I end up just staying home from school or activities because I don’t want to stamp.” For those of us unfamiliar with menstrual lingo, “stamping” is the strain you might get on your clothes and other things if it bleeds through and you sit on a chair for example, and leave a mark when you get up. While the terms might be unfamiliar to some of us, the gist of the statement sounds all too familiar—the potential embarrassment of situations when we are menstruating. I found it incredible. There I was….5,000 miles away from home, sitting across from strong women who have overcome adversity of having their parents killed in the Rwandan genocide in 1994, and I am nodding my head in agreement thinking, “You bet, sister, I’ve been there.” I remember wearing that white home game basketball uniform, subtly patting the back of my shorts to check if I was “stamping.”
There were only 12 people in the room on this Monday, but almost 3.3 billion other girls and women around the world who would’ve probably nodded their head in agreement with us today.
Orphans of Rwanda Office
Kigali, Rwanda
While Bill Clinton may not be my favorite president and I may not be his favorite intern, one of his statements has stuck with me…..“Despite all of our differences around the world, we, as humans, are 99% the same.” I think the context of the speech was “so why don’t we put down our guns and have peace on earth.” But tonight, after an intense focus group with twenty-
somethings who are part of the organization Orphans From Rwanda, I’m going to apply the statement to menstruation. After all, I’m sure that’s what Bill was really getting at in that commencement speech, right?One of the gals, LaJalia said today, “Sometimes I end up menstruating 6 or 7 days and because the sanitary pads are so expensive I end up using a pad for longer than I probably should. I end up just staying home from school or activities because I don’t want to stamp.” For those of us unfamiliar with menstrual lingo, “stamping” is the strain you might get on your clothes and other things if it bleeds through and you sit on a chair for example, and leave a mark when you get up. While the terms might be unfamiliar to some of us, the gist of the statement sounds all too familiar—the potential embarrassment of situations when we are menstruating. I found it incredible. There I was….5,000 miles away from home, sitting across from strong women who have overcome adversity of having their parents killed in the Rwandan genocide in 1994, and I am nodding my head in agreement thinking, “You bet, sister, I’ve been there.” I remember wearing that white home game basketball uniform, subtly patting the back of my shorts to check if I was “stamping.”
There were only 12 people in the room on this Monday, but almost 3.3 billion other girls and women around the world who would’ve probably nodded their head in agreement with us today.
Girl Stuff 101
22:35 June 28, 2008
Maryundo Girl’s School
Nyamata, Rwanda
“Why do I bleed once a month?”
I thought I had at least fifteen years til I had to answer that question from a young girl, but a quick trip to Rwanda has proved to provide more life milestones than a record number of French fries consumed. Today we had our first focus groups with girls, sixty in fact, and it was eye-opening, from the candor to the liveliness to the curiosity. These girls were yearning for answers, and the questions kept on coming. Why didn’t they know about menstruation? Why haven’t they talked about this before? Ahhh, it must be because of the struggling health and education system here. Well, if that was the case, then we could just work on improving upon those systems. But, in fact, it’s more than that.
Who’s ever bought sanitary napkins or tampons and put them in a
n opaque bag on the way out of the store? Who’s ever apologized in front of boys and/or men for bringing up the subject of menstruating? And what about those pretty plastic cases we’re supposed to use to hold our tampons in our bag? Why are we trying to hide this natural function that is our body preparing for giving birth? Why are we so apologetic?
I think it comes down to the taboo around menstruation. And this manifests itself with a lack of communication about girls’ and women’s bodies and how they change, how naturally and healthily they change.
Why didn’t they know this? Why haven’t they talked about this before? Before I can answer that question, I think I’ll have to answer another one…..“Why did I spend more time in high school health class learning how to drive a car than about my bodily health and hygiene?”
Maryundo Girl’s School
Nyamata, Rwanda
“Why do I bleed once a month?”
I thought I had at least fifteen years til I had to answer that question from a young girl, but a quick trip to Rwanda has proved to provide more life milestones than a record number of French fries consumed. Today we had our first focus groups with girls, sixty in fact, and it was eye-opening, from the candor to the liveliness to the curiosity. These girls were yearning for answers, and the questions kept on coming. Why didn’t they know about menstruation? Why haven’t they talked about this before? Ahhh, it must be because of the struggling health and education system here. Well, if that was the case, then we could just work on improving upon those systems. But, in fact, it’s more than that.
Who’s ever bought sanitary napkins or tampons and put them in a
n opaque bag on the way out of the store? Who’s ever apologized in front of boys and/or men for bringing up the subject of menstruating? And what about those pretty plastic cases we’re supposed to use to hold our tampons in our bag? Why are we trying to hide this natural function that is our body preparing for giving birth? Why are we so apologetic?I think it comes down to the taboo around menstruation. And this manifests itself with a lack of communication about girls’ and women’s bodies and how they change, how naturally and healthily they change.
Why didn’t they know this? Why haven’t they talked about this before? Before I can answer that question, I think I’ll have to answer another one…..“Why did I spend more time in high school health class learning how to drive a car than about my bodily health and hygiene?”
Haves and Have Nots
I can’t help but reflect on the day as I settle into my new bed and watch the persistent fly crash into the mosquito net that envelopes my bed. You’d think there was a gigantic hot fudge sundae on my side of the net given the fly’s persistence. Though both the fly and I have come up sans ice cream and disappointed, the net does remind me of the separation of those who have and those who don’t. Now, this is not an exclusively Rwandan characteristic, in fact, my home of the United States is 
one of the largest culprits of perpetuating inequality. Yet as the SHE Team headed to Nyamata, about an hour outside of Kigali, I couldn’t help but notice the girls and women walking alongside of the road, sometimes with multiple babies on their backs, a giant water jug on their head, with miles of road ahead, only to get home to hours-long tasks of fetching fire wood and cooking. Most men cycled by with no luggage. If they are lucky, they are on their way to a job as a shopkeeper, a driver. With unemployment hovering around 50%, that is highly unlikely.
What does this have to do with SHE and our mission? Perhaps nothing, but I wonder if this simple observation underlines the value (or lack thereof) placed on girls and women as players in education, business, and politics? And their coinciding needs…..like affordable sanitary products and services…..or a bike!
one of the largest culprits of perpetuating inequality. Yet as the SHE Team headed to Nyamata, about an hour outside of Kigali, I couldn’t help but notice the girls and women walking alongside of the road, sometimes with multiple babies on their backs, a giant water jug on their head, with miles of road ahead, only to get home to hours-long tasks of fetching fire wood and cooking. Most men cycled by with no luggage. If they are lucky, they are on their way to a job as a shopkeeper, a driver. With unemployment hovering around 50%, that is highly unlikely.What does this have to do with SHE and our mission? Perhaps nothing, but I wonder if this simple observation underlines the value (or lack thereof) placed on girls and women as players in education, business, and politics? And their coinciding needs…..like affordable sanitary products and services…..or a bike!
SHE Arrives in Kigali, Finally
22:06 June 24, 2008
Sky Hotel, Kigali, Rwanda
New York, Rome, Paris, Addis Ababa—sound like the answer to a Jeopardy question as to where you can find the best coffee in the world? Maybe so, but in my book, these cities will always remind me of my route to Kigali, Rwanda, on the first, on-the-ground, SHE Team mission. Three days after departing from New York, we finally arrived in the small and welcoming city of Kigali. I say welcoming because, in perfect cue, our bags not o
nly greeted us at the Kigali airport, but so did about a hundred boisterous Rwandans, donning Rwanda national flags, playing horns and cymbals, and chanting. Did they do this for every team addressing menstrual management problems, we wondered? Did the airlines tip them off that we had an excruciating journey imbued with busted complimentary movies, rubber chicken dinners, and flee infested single beds for two and not one? Maybe we needed a little cheering up? How thoughtful. We appreciated it as did the Rwandan national soccer team that also arrived with us in the airport the other day.
Yes, you heard right; the SHE Team is off on their first, on-the ground, mission in Kigali, Rwanda. How much more exciting can that be? If you are not familiar with us, perhaps now is the time to introduce. We, Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE), aim to address a simple, common, and yet largely ignored problem: girls’ and women’s lack of sustained access to affordable, high-quality sanitary napkins for menstruation. It’s hard to believe, but the problem exists….all over developing countries! It struck me as incredible that the problem is so prevalent and most of the activity to address it has been ad hoc, geographically clustered, and mainly donation based. Nearing the danger zone of being overeducated, I decided to take a step forward and do something about this outrageous problem by creating Sustainable Health Enterprise (SHE). We’d take a different approach and look to help girls and women start their own franchises to make and sell affordable, quality, eco-friendly, sanitary napkins. And since October 2007, I haven’t looked back….drumming up enthusiasm, support, and partnerships from MIT to Echoing Green to __(insert your name here!)___.
So now I am here with the award winning SHE Team from Harvard-MIT (http://web.mit.edu/ideas/www/index.htm) gearing up for a feasibility assessment in Rwanda. Sounds fancy, huh? But what is a feasibility assessment, really? We’re defining it as essential primary research to determine whether or not we’ll be able to pilot our intervention to tackle the menstrual management problem in Rwanda and beyond. We’ll be doing research in a few different “buckets” (in consulting talk); namely:
1. consumer insights which is just a fancy way of saying we’ll be talking to girls and women about what they currently use when they menstruate, if they are happy with it, and if they aren’t, how can it be improved.
2. product development which is a fancy way of saying we’ll be trying to make the darn product cheaply and locally. Well, how are we going to pull that off?
3. community networks which is a fancy way of saying we’ll be looking for local organizations to own the gig once we jump-start it. We want the local women to own the business of making affordable sanitary napkins.
And essentially, we’ll take this information and say “yay” or “nay” by the end of the mission in August.
So with much ado…we’re off to the field! Come on with us!
Sky Hotel, Kigali, Rwanda
New York, Rome, Paris, Addis Ababa—sound like the answer to a Jeopardy question as to where you can find the best coffee in the world? Maybe so, but in my book, these cities will always remind me of my route to Kigali, Rwanda, on the first, on-the-ground, SHE Team mission. Three days after departing from New York, we finally arrived in the small and welcoming city of Kigali. I say welcoming because, in perfect cue, our bags not o
nly greeted us at the Kigali airport, but so did about a hundred boisterous Rwandans, donning Rwanda national flags, playing horns and cymbals, and chanting. Did they do this for every team addressing menstrual management problems, we wondered? Did the airlines tip them off that we had an excruciating journey imbued with busted complimentary movies, rubber chicken dinners, and flee infested single beds for two and not one? Maybe we needed a little cheering up? How thoughtful. We appreciated it as did the Rwandan national soccer team that also arrived with us in the airport the other day.Yes, you heard right; the SHE Team is off on their first, on-the ground, mission in Kigali, Rwanda. How much more exciting can that be? If you are not familiar with us, perhaps now is the time to introduce. We, Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE), aim to address a simple, common, and yet largely ignored problem: girls’ and women’s lack of sustained access to affordable, high-quality sanitary napkins for menstruation. It’s hard to believe, but the problem exists….all over developing countries! It struck me as incredible that the problem is so prevalent and most of the activity to address it has been ad hoc, geographically clustered, and mainly donation based. Nearing the danger zone of being overeducated, I decided to take a step forward and do something about this outrageous problem by creating Sustainable Health Enterprise (SHE). We’d take a different approach and look to help girls and women start their own franchises to make and sell affordable, quality, eco-friendly, sanitary napkins. And since October 2007, I haven’t looked back….drumming up enthusiasm, support, and partnerships from MIT to Echoing Green to __(insert your name here!)___.
So now I am here with the award winning SHE Team from Harvard-MIT (http://web.mit.edu/ideas/www/index.htm) gearing up for a feasibility assessment in Rwanda. Sounds fancy, huh? But what is a feasibility assessment, really? We’re defining it as essential primary research to determine whether or not we’ll be able to pilot our intervention to tackle the menstrual management problem in Rwanda and beyond. We’ll be doing research in a few different “buckets” (in consulting talk); namely:
1. consumer insights which is just a fancy way of saying we’ll be talking to girls and women about what they currently use when they menstruate, if they are happy with it, and if they aren’t, how can it be improved.
2. product development which is a fancy way of saying we’ll be trying to make the darn product cheaply and locally. Well, how are we going to pull that off?
3. community networks which is a fancy way of saying we’ll be looking for local organizations to own the gig once we jump-start it. We want the local women to own the business of making affordable sanitary napkins.
And essentially, we’ll take this information and say “yay” or “nay” by the end of the mission in August.
So with much ado…we’re off to the field! Come on with us!
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