Free period products on campus AStA students initiate pilot project for greater equality
This year, students will receive a special Christmas gift from the AStA in the form of ten dispensers containing free menstrual products, which have recently been installed in central locations on campus. The project was developed by three students, Sarina Söhl, Charlotta Steinweg and Amelie Rother, and is supported by Ulrike Wrobel, the equal opportunities officer.
The topic of menstruation is still shrouded in shame. Taboos and silence characterise a biological process that accompanies many people’s lives involuntarily. At the same time, many girls and women cannot afford menstrual products. “On average, people who menstruate spend around 20,000 euros on period products in their lifetime,” explains physics student Sarina Söhl. For many students, this is an enormous financial burden. Psychology student Charlotta Steinweg adds: “If you suddenly get your period in public, it’s just uncomfortable. Menstrual products should be as readily available as toilet paper or soap.” This is exactly what the two students at TU Braunschweig set out to achieve.
How it all got started
Free sanitary pads and tampons finally on campus. Photo credit: Ulrike Wrobel/Technical University of Braunschweig.
When Söhl and Steinweg realised they were pursuing the same idea, they ran for election to the AStA’s autonomous women’s and lesbian department in order to advance the issue structurally. Similarly, Amelie Rother, a student of environmental sciences, quickly realised that she wanted to campaign for free menstrual products at Technische Universität Braunschweig: “I used to be active in my student group and together we were already able to equip the toilets at our institute. When I was elected to the AStA board in 2024, I wanted to extend the project to cover the whole university.” She took over the coordination without further ado and got the project off the ground together with Söhl and Steinweg.
The three students received support from Ulrike Wrobel, the equal opportunities officer. TU President Professor Angela Ittel was also convinced by the idea and agreed to finance the pilot phase. Additionally, a pharmacy chain made a surprise donation of ten dispensers, including the initial stock.
Locations selected jointly
The dispensers contain standard-size tampons and sanitary pads. The Diversity Office of the Equal Opportunities Unit will ensure that the dispensers are refilled with biodegradable period products in the future. After consulting with the building management, the dispensers were installed in locations chosen by the student body:
- Canteen 1
- Canteen 2
- Old Building
- Student Union
- Audimax
- Library
- Pharmacy Building
- Language Centre
- North Campus Building BI 84
- North Campus Library Social Sciences
To ensure that as many people as possible who menstruate have access, the dispensers are located in the entrance areas of the toilets or, in the case of the library, in the unisex toilets. For structural reasons, they could only be installed in the ladies’ toilets in Mensa 2, the student union building and the pharmacy building.
According to the initiators, the campaign has been very well received by the student body. They are not concerned that the dispensers will be constantly emptied. “If someone takes more because they urgently need it, that’s exactly the step towards greater equality of opportunity,” says Steinweg. “Our goal is to raise awareness of period poverty and reduce it in a practical way.”