Residence Services launches menstrual equity initiative to support residents where they live

Residents living in Crowsnest Hall will now have access to free menstrual products through new Residence Resource Stations installed throughout the building. Products such as pads and tampons will be widely available in public spaces to help reduce period poverty among graduate students living in residence at the University of Calgary.

The initiative was spearheaded by Anjola Adeboye, a former residence life co-ordinator with Residence Services. Adeboye applied for a grant after seeing the need in the Crowsnest Hall community and the previous success of similar initiatives across campus.

“Period poverty is the inability to routinely access the menstrual products needed to manage a period,” says Adeboye. “Tackling period poverty is one step towards menstrual equity, which is the principle that every individual who menstruates has what they need to menstruate with dignity.”

Before receiving the grant, free menstrual products were available sporadically in Crowsnest Hall. Residence Services had also been supporting residents with donated products distributed by Community Ambassadors. While those efforts helped improve access, supplies were often limited and demand showed there was an opportunity to create something more reliable and permanent within residence.

“For many students, residence is the first place they call home away from home. For those with family far away, this is their home,” says Adeboye, BHSc’22, MSc’25. “The resources we had were scant and unreliable. When we had products, they were gone within hours, highlighting the need in the community. I wanted to create something stable and consistent, something residents could rely on when they needed it.”

Crowsnest Hall has been fitted with wall-mounted dispensers in all washrooms, regardless of gender designation, along with additional dispensers in common areas so residents can find products when and where they need them. This will help normalize menstruation and reduce stigma for those who need the products.

For some residents, access to menstrual products is not always guaranteed, especially outside regular campus hours. In those situations, people may delay changing products, use them longer than intended or turn to temporary alternatives. This rationing of products is a core feature of period poverty.

Making products available in residence means support is there when residents need it, including evenings, weekends and in unexpected situations.

“Menstrual health is connected to physical health, mental well-being and the overall resident experience,” says Adeboye. “Access should be simple. It shouldn’t depend on where someone is, what time it is, which washroom they use or whether they feel comfortable asking for help.”

The initiative was funded through the Graduate Students’ Association’s (GSA) Quality Money Fund, a joint initiative between the GSA and the UCalgary Board of Governors that supports projects focused on improving student life on campus.