We’re excited to highlight our founder and CEO Christine Garde-Denning’s recent appearance on Episode 52 of “Diva On A Mission” Podcast with host Eva the Diva. The conversation explored Christine’s journey from gang diversion work in the US to founding a global movement to end period poverty.
Diva On A Mission
The Diva On A Mission Podcast, which shares “snippets of joy to uplift, inspire, and motivate,” provided the perfect platform for Christine to tell the story of how CouldYou? evolved from its original mission to its current focus on ending period poverty worldwide.
From Gang Diversion to Global Impact
Christine’s story is one of evolution and purpose. She shared how her early career working with at-risk teenagers and gang members in public housing shaped her understanding of systemic issues. Starting CouldYou? in 2008, the organization originally focused on connecting Western philanthropists with African leaders to create sustainable solutions—always with Africa leading the way.
The pivot to menstrual health came through their work in Mozambique, where they discovered that while 93% of girls started kindergarten, only 11% reached secondary school and just 1% went to college. As Christine explained, “You can’t build a nation without girls,” leading them to investigate the barriers girls face in education.
The Science Behind the Solution
When Eva asked about ensuring the safety of menstrual cups, Christine detailed their research-based approach. She highlighted the work of Dr. Penny Phillips-Howard from Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, whose seven-year study in Kenya showed remarkable results: girls using menstrual cups saw a 33% reduced risk of HSV-2, a 24% reduction in bacterial vaginosis, and a 37% increase in beneficial vaginal bacteria.
Christine emphasized that extensive research already exists proving the cup’s safety and effectiveness, even in rural African settings. The challenge wasn’t proving the science—it was overcoming misconceptions from global funders who believed “the cup works in Europe and America but not in Africa.”
Breaking Myths and Building Partnerships
Christine candidly discussed the cultural challenges they’ve encountered, from beliefs that menstruating women can’t farm or cook, to misconceptions about the menstrual cup itself. The key to their success lies in local partnerships—working with community organizations, health workers, and peer-to-peer education where local women train other women.
Their partnership model involves identifying the best local organizations already doing sexual and reproductive health work, training their teams, and building local capacity rather than “creating a CouldYou? empire.”
Meaningful Success
What keeps Christine motivated despite setbacks like losing major funding? The testimonies from girls and women whose lives have been transformed. She shared powerful examples, including women farmers in Zimbabwe living on $1,000 a year who, after receiving cups, asked how they could buy them for their communities.
Most impactfully, she highlighted testimonies like: “I’ve not had to have sex for a box of pads ever since I used the cup” and “I haven’t missed school. I’m not sitting on sand digging a little hole and bleeding into it.”
Listen to the Full Interview
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As Christine powerfully stated in the interview: “I just want the world to become as familiar with the cup as they are with the tampon. They don’t have to use it if they don’t want to, but I want them to know it’s out there.”
With 200,000 girls already served and millions more on the waitlist, CouldYou? is changing the world one girl at a time—proving that sustainable solutions to period poverty are not only possible, but urgently needed.
Learn more about CouldYou?’s research-backed approach and partnerships across 15+ countries that are making menstrual cups accessible to communities worldwide.