Friends of Londiani is always keen to promote events and initiatives that are relevant to the causes it supports. And given that one of our most prominent programmes in Londiani in recent years has been Girls for Girls - a drive to provide all school-going girls with sanitary products - we are delighted to announce that on Wednesday May 28th the first Menstrual Hygiene Day takes place. We’re even more delighted that Friends of Londiani is a partner to the day. It links perfectly with the Girls for Girls sanitary products programme and is therefore another opportunity to increase awareness, not only of Girls for Girls but of a topic that, let’s be honest, is still not well understood and often barely discussed. The news of our role in the day only came through very recently, so we apologise for the short notice, but we do hope that our supporters and readers of this blog will not only find out more about the day but pass on the information to as many other people as possible. As this is the first ever Menstrual Hygiene Day, the theme for this year is ‘Let's start the conversation about menstruation!’ And that’s what we hope you’ll do. But you may need reliable support and information. If so the Menstrual Hygiene Day website (http://menstrualhygieneday.org) offers an action kit for partners and supporters worldwide to get involved with menstrual hygiene management (MHM) advocacy. But even if you can’t promote the day itself the material contained in the kit is worth reading: it’s important, informative and authoritative. It includes, for example, fact sheets explaining why menstrual hygiene is fundamental to advancing education, ensuring health, strengthening the economy, protecting the environment and realising human rights. There’s a 'Boys and men are fundamental to changing attitudes' fact sheet as well, emphasising something that came up in our March blogs, notably http://www.friendsoflondiani.com/blog/?p=1068. There are also guides to help start the conversation about menstruation (one aimed at girls and women, the other at boys and men); a social media toolkit; a bracelet making guide; and suggestions for MH Day t-shirts. The eventual aim? A world in which every woman and girl can manage her menstruation in a hygienic way - wherever she is - in privacy, in safety and with dignity. And if talking about it can bring that world closer - let’s talk!