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19 | W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,June 13,2019 w aterloochronicle.ca $1 You don't have space for your stuff so we created it for you! 90 NEW UNITS to be moved into. MOVE IN NOW! FIRST MONTH* $1 409 Weber Street West Kitchener, Ontario N2H 4B1 226-790-2365 *SOME RESTRICTIONS AND CONDITIONS APPLY By the end of the year, as many as 15,000 people will have access to men- struation products, thanks to an effort from a Kitchener company. Diva International, the creators of the Diva Cup, announced this week that it will donate 15,000 Diva Cups across the world by the end of the year. The medical-grade sil- icone cups are reusable and collect menstrual flow. They are then emp- tied and reused in place of tampons or pads. The 15,000 Diva Cups are partner of the compa- ny's DivaCares program, where they aim to edu- cate, advocate and in- crease access to menstru- ation products for women around the world. "We've always been deeply concerned about people who have periods and their access to period products," said Alexis Biermann, DivaCares manager and positivity of- ficer at Diva International. The company's new Di- vaCares website, www.di- vacares.com, will allow groups or organizations to apply for a donation of the products. It is avail- able worldwide. Locally, both Bier- mann and Virgina Shay, communications co-ordi- nator, have seen an im- provement when it comes to awareness around pe- riod poverty. Period pov- erty is described as lack of access to menstruation products due to economic barriers. "Absolutely we've seen an increase in this con- versation, but we're try- ing to move to an increase in action and that's really what DivaCares is focus- ing on," said Biermann. Earlier this year, Diva International partnered with TheMuseum in downtown Kitchener to showcase artwork and host seminars about menstruation. Last week, the Waterloo Region Dis- trict School Board an- nounced that it will have menstrual products available to all of its stu- dents for free. Locally, Diva Interna- tional has partnered with a number of different or- ganizations, including the SHORE Centre. "We are excited that there have been a number of opportunities for our- selves and other organi- zations to talk about this," said Biermann. "The conversation needs to continue." One of the advantages of the Diva Cup, Bier- mann and Shay say, is that it can be reused. It is estimated that over a woman's lifetime, 250 to 300 pounds of period-re- lated waste ends up in the landfill. KITCHENER COMPANY MAKES DONATION TO REDUCE PERIOD POVERTY Diva Cup International communications coordinator Virginia Shay and DivaCares manager and positivity officer Alexis Biermann stand with some of the products that will be donated. The Kitchener company has offered 15,000 menstrual cups to be donated around the world. Adam Jackson/Torstar ADAM JACKSON ajackson@waterloo chronicle.ca NEWS