Changing Stigmatized Views of Menstruation in Nepal

In countries around the world, menstruation is viewed as a rite of passage, one that symbolizes the end of puberty and the ability to carry a child. In Nepal, cultural and religious beliefs can impose a heavy toll on the mountainous nation's young women. Many, especially those who live in more rural areas, are forced to endure an ancient tradition called Chhaupadi. 

Viewed as unclean, these women are banished from their homes for the duration of their period or longer and consigned to small sheds while refraining from touching certain foods, religious icons, or men. Even though the country's supreme court outlawed Chhaupadi in 2008, a 2019 report by the Himalayan Times found that as many as 15 Nepali girls and women had died over 13 years as a result of it.

Kripa Khatiwada '26, a growth and structure of cities major and data science minor at Bryn Mawr, has spent the past four years working to evolve the stigmatized views of menstruation in her home country. Even though she was raised in Nepal's more progressive capital, Kathmandu, she knows their repercussions all too well. 

"I grew up following a lot of those traditional restrictions. When I got my period for the first time, I was put in a dark room for seven days," she says. "I went through it. A lot of other girls I knew went through it. I thought it was normal." Her perspective changed, she says, after talking to friends who had more liberal parents. 

In 2020, she found an outlet to support women and encourage change in her country when she was introduced to Reusable Pads Nepal, a small company that produces eco-friendly feminine hygiene products. Because of her knack for social media and fluency in English, she was quickly hired and tasked with growing and managing the company's online presence.

"It was an opportunity that combined sustainability with women's empowerment, so I was all for it," Khatiwada says. "Plus, I had a lot of free time because of the COVID pandemic."

As sales grew, Khatiwada approached Reusable Pads Nepal's owners with a new idea: Why not direct some of the sales profits to broaden its fledgling outreach and education programs? "That way, it's not just a business; we would also be doing something to uplift the women of our country," she says. 

Through her leadership, the company's outreach grew well beyond Kathmandu, where most resources are consolidated, she says, reaching into Nepal's rural villages. Its programs included basic information about menstruation as a natural, biological process and why sustainable hygiene products are better for the environment. All of the programs, she says, are reinforced with a plea to remove deleterious restrictions placed on women. 

Even after arriving at Haverford, Khatiwada continued her work and, through funding from the College's Center for Peace and Global Citizenship, has spent nearly every break in the academic year conducting workshops at home. This summer alone, she estimates she engaged more than 1,000 students while leading three reusable pad sewing workshops in three different villages. Khatiwada's team collaborated with several village development committees that are now planning to fund some women to start their own small businesses to sell the pads they create. 

Khatiwada's work with students is perhaps the most fulfilling, she says. Amid the giggles that generally accompany discussions about reproductive health with young people, she makes a concerted effort to engage young men so they can better understand what their classmates are enduring and what she once dealt with. 

"I don't care if I can't change the whole country's views," she says. "But if one girl goes up to her parents and says, 'I learned about this today, so I will not be restricting myself anymore,' I feel like I've done my job."