For International Women’s Day, The Lotus partnered with Guangzhou Xinqiao School SCA to campaign against the issues of “menstrual poverty,” the lack of access to menstrual products, and “menstrual shame,” the lack of education and discussion about the topic of menstruation. Four girls from SCA led a joint project to collect menstrual products for adolescent girls from rural China who faced period poverty in an effort called “Glowing Wǒmen” (also means “Glowing Us” in Chinese). They interviewed pedestrians of all backgrounds for a social experiment on the idea of menstruation and heard diverse arrays of stories and responses to the issue. On a board, interviewees wrote about their personal thoughts and experiences on the topic, turning the once white board into a beautiful piece of art filled with thoughtful messages, stories, and ideas.

In this project, The Lotus founder, Scoot, was interviewed in a podcast, along with Dr. Chen Qiuxia, to spread awareness about menstruation, answering questions including “What is it?" and “How should I take care of myself during it?” among other questions and helpful facts. They also discussed Scoot’s experiences of founding The Lotus and running the nonprofit, her own experiences with the issues of menstrual poverty and menstrual shame, and how The Lotus is helping. In addition, The Lotus connected Guangzhou Xinqiao School SCA with several middle schools to help distribute the many menstrual products that they collected. More than 600 packages were collected as donations for three schools in rural China.

In honor of International Women’s Day, it is crucial to acknowledge the fundamental causes behind these issues and initiate discussion and education about menstrual health, and broader gender issues.