A Fulbright for Carmen Cronin

Who knew that May 28 marks Menstrual Hygiene Day, a global movement to break the silence around menstruation? It’s appropriate that we highlight this important issue on The Flow, but there’s more. We are delighted that Rain Barrel Associate Carmen Cronin (see our Associates page) is now the recipient of a Fulbright Award to Uganda 2015-2016.

Carmen’s Fulbright project, designed with her local affiliate Network for Water and Sanitation (NETWAS), will study the menstrual experiences of adolescent girls in Kampala. They want to understand the impact menstruation has on daily life; identify barriers and facilitators to good menstrual health; and identify local solutions that could inform policy.

Half of the world’s female population has one thing in common: menstruation. Yet, millions of girls and women experience vast disparities regarding access to sanitary products and resort to using unhygienic alternatives such as rags, bark, dirt, and ash. According to Carmen, it has largely been ignored as a public health concern, though Ugandan public officials have made commitments to put menstrual health on the government agenda.

Misconceptions about menstruation have shrouded it in secrecy, fueling the proliferation of myths, and reinforcing gender inequity and exclusion through stigmatization and socio-cultural restrictions.

We know that Carmen’s work will make a big difference in Uganda and beyond. Congrats!