LifeStraw Safe Water Fund

Periods should never hold girls back. At LifeStraw, we believe that a period should mark progress, not pause a girl's potential. SafiCycle, a movement run by LifeStraw, is breaking barriers, protecting health, restoring dignity, and keeping girls in school across Kenya. This isn't just a program, it's a long-term solution for education, health, and dignity. The Program In 2023, we launched SafiCycle in Western Kenya—reaching over 1,750 adolescents with reusable menstrual underwear and comprehensive reproductive health education. The SafiCycle Menstrual Hygiene Program aims to improve menstrual health and hygiene management for adolescent girls in rural areas. The program is designed to provide access to safe, sustainable menstrual products, education on proper menstrual hygiene practices, and break down the stigma around menstruation.​ Our goal is to empower adolescents with the knowledge and resources they need to manage their menstrual hygiene effectively, without fear or shame. We believe that by doing so, we can help improve their health, well-being, and overall quality of life.​ SafiCycle is about fostering understanding within communities. Our programming includes educating boys and men to break down stigma and promote empathy, creating a more inclusive society. The Challenges Adolescents across the globe are often unprepared for the onset of menstruation; they regularly lack materials for hygienically catching blood, facilities for changing and disposing of menstrual waste, spaces and supplies for the cleaning of reusable menstrual materials, and proper menstrual health and hygiene information and education. ​ 65% of adolescent girls in Kenya cannot afford menstrual hygiene products, and often resort to using rags or other fabric or paper scraps for all their hygiene needs.​ Many schools lack proper sanitation facilities to address menstruation needs (including a safe, clean private location to change their menstrual products; a private and environmentally-friendly place to discard pads; and soap and clean water to wash hands afterwards). ​ Just 32% of rural schools in Kenya have a private place for girls to change their menstrual products. The Negative Impacts Studies from Kenya find that schoolgirls engage in transactional sex to pay for menstrual products and other basic needs. In rural Western Kenya, 2 out of 3 pad users receive pads from sexual partners. One study revealed that as many as 10% of 15-year old girls were having sex to pay for period products. Poor menstrual hygiene can pose serious health risks, like reproductive and urinary tract infections which can result in future infertility and birth complications. In Kenya, it is estimated that girls lose an average of 4 days of school a month due to complications managing menstruation. This costs them 165 learning days over four years of high school. ​ The Solutions By providing safe, reusable menstrual hygiene panties, girls can stay in school longer, stay safe from infection, and stay out of the transactional environment of trading for period products. By wearing the panties even when not menstruating, it minimizes the risks for ‘embarrassing’ leaks – encouraging girls to attend school even when it’s around the time of their menses. ​Reusable period panties only need to be changed every 12 hours, so one pair can last the entire school day. ​They are less conspicuous than reusable pads, so can reduce the shame and stigma of properly washing and drying the products. ​ Your Support LifeStraw is on a pathway to expand SafiCycle to cover 100,000 girls in the next five years. Your contributions can help us reach this milestone. $15 gives one girl one year of dignity through SafiCycle $45 covers one girl, with three years of support $450 transforms an entire classroom $7,500 empowers an entire school $75,000 impacts an entire school system 100% of donated funds go toward the cost of products and distribution of supplies. Vestergaard Frandsen, Inc. (d/b/a “LifeStraw”) does not profit from your donation. LifeStraw’s Safe Water Fund operates through a fiscal sponsorship with Players Philanthropy Fund, a Texas nonprofit corporation recognized by the IRS as a tax-exempt public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (Federal Tax ID: 27-6601178, ppf.org/pp). Contributions to LifeStraw’s Safe Water Fund qualify as tax-deductible.

At LifeStraw, we recognize access to safe water as a human right. We provide safe water to communities around the world solely on the basis of need. In Gaza, 96% of the water is currently unsafe for human consumption, according to the UN. Nearly all safe water supplies have been cut off by Israel, along with fuel and electricity that power water and sewage plants. More people could die from disease than from bombings in the Gaza Strip, the WHO has said. There has been a dramatic rise in documented cases of diarrheal diseases, which can be especially dangerous for young children and other vulnerable populations. 49,000 cases of diarrhea (over half among children under 5 years of age) have been reported already; this compares with pre-war monthly average of 2,000 cases. And it is assumed that actual cases are much higher. There are also mounting threats of large-scale outbreaks of potentially fatal diseases like cholera. LifeStraw is committed to supporting safe water efforts in Gaza – both during the current, immediate response efforts, as well as during long-term post-war recovery. We have already donated over 13,000 LifeStraw personal filters – which are being transported to Gaza in partnership with Global Empowerment Mission, Resala Charity Organization, Anera and others. In addition to sending more LifeStraw filters, we are in communication with many key stakeholders to understand how else we can support access to safe drinking water. All of the money donated to this fundraiser will support safe water access to families in Gaza. We are committed to being as transparent as possible and will provide continuous updates to all donors on progress made. Thank you so much for helping us get safe drinking water to people in Gaza. 100% of donated funds go toward the cost of products and distribution of supplies. Vestergaard Frandsen, Inc. (d/b/a “LifeStraw”) does not profit from your donation. LifeStraw’s Safe Water Fund operates through a fiscal sponsorship with Players Philanthropy Fund, a Texas nonprofit corporation recognized by the IRS as a tax-exempt public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (Federal Tax ID: 27-6601178, ppf.org/pp). Contributions to LifeStraw’s Safe Water Fund qualify as tax-deductible.