Students produce sanitary pads to distribute kits against menstrual poverty In the library of a municipal school on the outskirts of Porto Alegre, in Rio Grande do Sul, a group of teenagers decided to transform a conversation previously surrounded by shame into welcoming, information and social impact. It was there that the collective “Girls in Red” was born, created by students from Escola Municipal Saint Hilaire to combat menstrual poverty and open space for debates about health, violence and female dignity. The initiative came about after the girls themselves realized that many of their classmates did not have access to sanitary pads or were even able to talk about menstruation at home or at school. “Menstruation was a hidden topic”, says student Joana Souza, one of the project’s creators. How public school students use entrepreneurship against menstrual poverty in RS Reproduction/PEGN In addition to conversation circles, the collective distributes menstrual health items to girls in vulnerable situations. The group also created kits with reusable pads and thermal bags. The logic is simple: each kit sold helps finance another that will be donated free of charge. With educational actions aimed at children and adolescents, the project has already visited more than 30 schools in the capital of Rio Grande do Sul and has become a reference in debates on menstrual dignity and prevention of sexual violence. Conversations take place “girl to girl”, which, according to the students, makes participants feel safer to share experiences and doubts. The impact of the initiative led the group to gain national prominence in the Desafio Liga Jovem, an entrepreneurship competition aimed at students. How public school students use entrepreneurship against menstrual poverty in RS Reproduction/PEGN The experience opened doors for mentoring, events and even a trip to Madrid, where the teenagers presented the project in innovation spaces. Today, the young women's dream is to expand the reach of the initiative so that more girls have access to basic menstrual health items and information about their own bodies. “Entrepreneurial education contributes to social transformation”, says professor Maria Gabriela de Souza, project advisor. Coletivo Luisa Marques ? Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coletivoluisamarques/ ? Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/garotasde_vermelho/