At the onset of the pandemic we made the decision to prioritise the health and safety of our field teams, fellows and community members and paused our Community Outreach programmes. Taking into consideration the impact of COVID-19 on marginalised communities and particularly women and girls, we launched Hello Saheli, a free tele-health helpline that enabled us to address critical menstrual and sexual reproductive health needs via telemedicine consultations and create safe spaces for dialogue, at scale across India.

The 2021 fellowship has a new name to reflect these unprecedented times – The Period Fellowship Pandemic Response. Fellows will continue our mission to end menstrual stigma, gaining invaluable grassroots experience and a nuanced understanding of behaviour change, gender, reproductive health, sanitation and access to resources in marginalised communities. The thoughtfully crafted leadership journey that culminates in Period Fellows being ready to step-up as future menstrual health leaders remains unchanged.

Where in prior years Period Fellows delivered our Community Outreach programme, spending a significant amount of time in communities and schools, in 2021-22 Pandemic Response Period Fellows will focus on building a local movement through strategic partnerships, grassroots engagement, and designing and implementing innovative ideas that spread awareness of Hello Saheli.

The 2021 cohort of Pandemic Response Period Fellows will play a critical role in setting up the foundation of our work in rural Bihar, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, where we plan to deepen our impact over the next five years. We look forward to welcoming a passionate, resilient and creative bunch to our tribe to make menstruation a non-issue across India.

Applicants must be:

• At least 21 years of age and excited to commit to The Period Fellowship PR full-time over 15 months
  (paid fellowship) Willing to relocate to a rural district in Madhya Pradesh / Maharashtra / Bihar and be fluent in spoken Hindi / Marathi / Bhojpuri.
• Possess a working knowledge of written and spoken English.
• Demonstrate prior experience in the development sector and one of the following areas: media and  campaigns / partnership management / grassroots engagement.
• Possess a Bachelor’s Degree.
• Comfortable riding a two-wheeler or commit to learning over the next 6 months.
• People from backwards castes, tribes and sexual minority groups are encouraged to apply.
• We fiercely welcome diversity in our 2021.
• Period Fellow – Pandemic Response applicants, as the need of the hour requires creative, contextual solutions. No matter your gender, sexuality, age or professional background, we look forward to working with passionate, dedicated humans to make menstruation a non-issue.

From 2021-2026 Sukhibhava is deepening its impact in rural Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.  Pandemic Response Period Fellows will be placed in teams of three in their preferred region alongside a full-time Fellowship Manager who will provide mentorship and guidance, support operations, nurture you throughout your leadership journey.

Your journey begins with travel to your preferred rural region where you will join two other Period. Fellows and a Fellowship Lead for the next 15-months. Once settled in, the team will engage in a month-long remote bootcamp led by the Sukhibhava core team and key partners where we gain an insight into your unique story, motivation and talents, and work with you to build on a variety of skills that will help you scale our work in the most marginalised communities. Over this time you will become a master of menstrual and sexual reproductive health and become familiar with your diverse cohort selected from all over India.

Your team will be responsible for creating a local movement to normalise menstruation through strategic partnerships with Government and Non-Goverment stakeholders, building relationships in communities and designing and implementing creative campaigns to spread word about Hello Saheli. An open-mindset, creativity and resilience are warmly welcomed – fellows are given the flexibility to shape regional operations, with the support of their managers and core Sukhibhava team who are enthusiastic to collaborate on new approaches to achieving gender equity.

Absolutely! We began recruiting male fellows in our 2019 Period Fellowship cohort and are actively searching for male fellows to join us going forward to scale our menstrual and sexual reproductive health initiatives among men and boys. Men often end up being the primary decision-makers in marginalised households so it is extremely important to engage them in the conversation to enable them to recognise and support menstruators’ needs.

Yes, of course! Fellows will receive a stipend of 25,000INR per month which includes their travel allowance to and from schools, partner organisations and communities.

Sukhibhava prides itself on its immersive 15-month leadership journey starting 1 June 2021 and ending 31 August 2021. The cut-off date to apply for this batch is Sunday Feb 14, 2021.

Being a member of The Period Fellowship cohort is a transformative experience, where the highs and lows experienced together forges friendships for life. After the whirlwind journey comes to an end, you can look forward to:
• A warm welcome into our spirited tribe.
• Introductions to potential employers based on your areas of interest.
• A select few visionary Period Fellows can apply to become a PeriodPreneur to incubate their own menstrual health start-up.

Providing access to menstrual hygiene products doesn’t necessarily impact how an adolescent menstruator perceives their body, or whether an adult feels worthy to touch food or visit a temple while menstruating. We’re firm believers that ending menstrual stigma through open dialogue between family and community members around menstrual and sexual reproductive health can have a significant impact on the agency of menstruators in the long-term. The more we can normalise periods in households, the greater the potential of menstruators advocating for their needs and reclaiming agency over their bodies.

We encourage you to read through our FAQs in detail, however, if you still have questions unanswered, you’re welcome to email richa.khobragade@theperiodfellowship.in