Top 25 Women of Influence 2018: Jana Girdauskas

Jana Girdauskas

Entrepreneur

A teacher by day, Jana Girdauskas started The Period Purse with one idea: one purse filled with menstrual supplies and other hygiene items to give to someone experiencing homelessness. In the spring of 2018, Girdauskas and a teenage volunteer created Menstruation Nation, a high school program to help highlight menstrual equity, helping schools to have period product drives, and starting the conversation around periods. In May 2018, Girdauskas, along with another period advocate, worked with Toronto city councilor Kristyn Wong-Tam to get Toronto to proclaim May 28th Menstrual Hygiene Day. This was a bold step for the city to recognize and start opening up more of the conversation around period poverty and the challenges that people experiencing homelessness and people living in marginalized communities face when dealing with their period. Over the past year, Girdauskas has led her volunteer team in Toronto and the community to donate period supplies for menstruators to have over 9,000 healthy periods. The Period Purse has now spread to 9 other Ontario cities.

Who else are we honouring? See the full Women of Influence Top 25 list for 2018.