OUR IMPACT

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We provide more than menstrual health products, we provide dignity.

The Flow Initiative is committed to eradicating period poverty and below is a snapshot of impact within New Jersey and beyond. 

To date, The Flow Initiative has distributed more than 1.8 million menstrual health products worldwide. Products have been distributed to community centers, food banks, pantries, schools, and other locations to help those in need.

To date, The Flow Initiative has conducted over 300 educational workshops and reached 40,000 students on period poverty and menstrual equity to schools, libraries, corporations, global organizations, domestic abuse shelters, and more.

In 2022, The Flow Initiative worked in partnership with Governor Murphy and his team to declare May 28th as Menstrual Equity Day in New Jersey, which will increase statewide awareness and help address inequities in communities. 

In 2021, The Flow Initiative created Project Local Access, which has placed 40,000 free products and menstrual health care packages in all Jersey City library branches. This program is ongoing and sponsors are welcome.

The Flow Initiative created the first free period pilot program in New Jersey at P.S. 34/President Barack Obama School in Jersey City, NJ and a subsequent pilot program at North Star Academy in Newark, NJ.

To date, The Flow Initiative has worked on several bills and initiatives to achieve menstrual equity in New Jersey. In 2022, The Flow Initiative testified at the New Jersey Assembly Women and Children Committee’s meeting to advance bills to expand menstrual equity and health. Several of the bills aim to alleviate the cost of pads, tampons, and other period products by: 

• Requiring homeless shelters to provide free period products. 
• Allocating $200,000 for food pantries to buy menstrual hygiene products for low-income residents. 
• Requiring public assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Women, Infants, and Children to include period products among the covered benefits. 
• Urging Congress to provide period products under Medicaid, SNAP, and WIC.