Guest Post: Ella writes:
We asked Postal worker and campaigner Ella Daish to tell us about taking Eco Period Action this December.
“My name is Ella and I’m the postal worker who started the campaign to ‘Make all Menstrual Products Plastic Free’ in February this year, which has received an overwhelming response with over 106,000 signatures to date.”
Since I started the petition in February and began campaigning for change, I have become aware of just how many problems there are surrounding menstruation, through the fantastic work and campaigning that inspiring individuals and groups are doing in this field. These issues range from the taboo in talking about periods, the environmental impacts of plastic in our period care and period poverty.
Period poverty wrongly affects so many
In fact according to Plan UK 1 in 10 girls between the ages of 14-21 cannot afford menstrual products and a shocking 137,000 have missed school because of this. And it does not only impact those at school, it also affects those that are homeless, refugees and simply those that cannot afford them. No one should ever be held back or have to miss out on their education or be put in an uncomfortable position because they cannot afford period care. The thought of the thousands of women and girls out there who do not have access to these essentials saddens me, period poverty really does not have a place in our society and should not exist in 2018, which is the reason I decided to address this by creating Eco Period Box
After seeing reverse advent calendars last year in the aid of food banks, I felt compelled to do this but instead for period poverty! That is why this year, rather than giving gifts to family and friends for Christmas, I’m putting an eco-friendly item each day throughout December into my Eco Period Box, which will then be donated to a period poverty charity at the start of the New Year! By donating eco-friendly period products that myself and many others around me use, it is giving more options to people in need whilst leaving a minimal environmental impact; that really benefits all. I also believe that everyone deserves a choice in what they use, which is why I am also including some reusables.
The Eco Period Box started on December 1st and ends on December 31st, it is a fantastic opportunity to help support the incredible work that so many period poverty charities like the Red Box Project, Bloody Good Period, Freedom 4 Girls and food banks like the Trussell Trust are doing every single day! You can get eco-period products from local health food shops, supermarkets and if your time is limited then there are multiple online stores that you can buy from and get your order sent directly to your chosen charity by using their address in the delivery details! You can join in with Eco Period Action anytime throughout December by donating an item, sharing the video, setting up a box at work or at home, encouraging others to get involved and by sharing what you are doing on social media using the hashtag #ecoperiodbox!
I would be delighted if you would join me in taking Eco Period Action for Good, so that we can make a positive difference and give back this December to help those in need! Let’s get donating and make this a festive period to benefit all.
For more information check out Ella’s blog post: www.ecoelle.co.uk/blog/eco-period-box and follow her on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for regular updates!
The link to the campaign is: www.change.org/plasticfreeperiods and Twitter, Instagram and Facebook is: @ecoelleuk.
Campaigning to #endperiodplastic and spreading the word about the negative environmental impact of plastic pollution #gogreenonyourflow #ecoperiodbox
Read more about Environmenstrual and protecting the rivers and beaches here
Find out more about plastic-free period options here
[…] And do you know about Ella Daish and how she started the Plastic Free Period revolution – read here […]