
Over the past four years, the University of Alberta Students’ Union (UASU) has been providing thousands of free menstrual products across North Campus through the Period Equity Program. It has also partnered with Club Periodically to reach even further across campus. This year, students have an opportunity to help this program expand even further.
By providing period products, these two programs work to prevent period poverty and normalize menstruation at the U of A. Of menstruating Canadians, 17 per cent have experienced period poverty, which refers to being unable to afford period products. This can result in people using products for an unsafe amount of time or not having access to them at all. By providing these products on campus, the Period Equity Program and Club Periodically make campus more accessible.
To expand this project, Club Periodically wants to bring a referendum to the student body during the 2025 UASU election. The hope is to implement an opt-outable $1 fee to help fund free menstrual products across North Campus. In order to nominate the initiative to be voted on as a referendum, they need 5,000 signatures from U of A students. The petition is called the Period Equity Initiative, and it has been collecting signatures since early November.
Club Periodically is key to furthering period equity for U of A students. In the fall semester, Club Periodically set a goal to provide 30 to 50 baskets of free, sustainable menstrual across North Campus.
Currently, there are five free, sustainable period product dispensers that can be found near washrooms in the Students’ Union Building (SUB), the Van Vliet Complex, and at Campus Saint-Jean (CSJ). Students who cannot afford period products or simply forgot to pack extra products in their bag can access these products. These dispensers are an incredible resource for menstruating individuals across the gender spectrum.
And Club Periodically does more than just supply free period products across campus. Club Periodically continues to make period product packaging more sustainable. To do so, they host activity events to create crafts out of the wrappers, including notebooks and earrings. These products are then sold at the Green for Good Market. By prioritizing sustainability and accessibility, Club Periodically is making a difference.
The great part about the Period Equity Initiative is that the $1 fee they are proposing is opt-outable. This means that students do not have to pay for this fee if they do not wish to. But signing the petition is a simple and cost-free way to support the program and make the campus period equitable.
As of January 20, the Period Equity Initiative petition has collected 80 per cent of the 5,000 signatures required. It only has until February 1 to collect the remaining signatures. Without the remaining signatures, students won’t have the chance to vote on the Period Equity Initiative during the 2025 UASU election. Our campus needs more period equity, and this is the perfect chance to support that.