UNICEF and Duke University has announced the selection of the first cohort of social entrepreneurs participating in the Duke-UNICEF Innovation Accelerator.
Building on UNICEF’s 70-year history of innovating for children and Duke’s track record of success in entrepreneurial education, the Innovation Accelerator aims to support social enterprises tackling the most pressing challenges facing children and youth around the world.
Six social enterprises will join the Innovation Accelerator to develop and scale innovations that are addressing menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) in East Africa and beyond.
The innovators’ solutions – which range from digital apps to reusable and disposable pads, to community health models – all aim to strengthen menstrual health and hygiene while tackling pervasive cultural taboos and educational barriers surrounding menstruation.
As adolescent girls enter puberty and begin to menstruate, many face challenges at school and at home that can lead to stress, shame, embarrassment, confusion, and fear.
These challenges may include a lack of knowledge about the menstrual cycle, insufficient access to menstrual hygiene materials, and inadequate WASH facilities for girls to privately change and discreetly dispose of used menstrual materials. By emphasizing local solutions that put girls and women at the center, the Innovation Accelerator cohort will collectively bring much-needed MHH solutions to communities and in turn, help empower the next generation to be healthy, happy, and educated.
“Limited resources, misinformation and shame surrounding menstruation can have a profoundly negative impact on girls’ lives and well-being,” said Kelly Ann Naylor, Associate Director, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) at UNICEF.
“By finding innovative solutions for menstrual health, we’re not only advancing girls’ rights to water and sanitation, but also helping young women stay healthy, pursue their education, and have the security and confidence to fulfill their potential.”
The Innovation Accelerator’s first cohort of innovators come from diverse academic, professional and geographic backgrounds. Through the two-year program, the entrepreneurs will have access to a multitude of resources, including UNICEF subject matter experts, mentorship opportunities, Duke University faculty and students, monthly capacity-building webinars, and a week-long residency at Duke’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Initiative.
“We look forward to hosting this extraordinary group of entrepreneurs on the Duke campus for an intensive residency where we will connect them into expertise, resources and mentorship across the Duke innovation system,” said Jon Fjeld, director of Duke’s Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative (I&E). “Duke has a long history of educating and supporting social entrepreneurs, and we are proud to partner with UNICEF to maximize the impact of these important social enterprises.”
Click here to meet the 6 selected startups.
