J&J and SHE Teams with J&J's Worldwide Vice President, Global Corporate Affairs Michael Sneed

Rethinking social change as “profitable good”

Guest post by Melissa Driver Beard, Executive Director 

Executive Director Melissa Driver Beard at Johnson and JohnsonAt the end of an exciting and productive week for SHE Rwanda’s Production Manager, Dany Karemera, I had the pleasure of joining Dany, Elizabeth, and members of the J&J team including Michael Moscherosch, Aimee Sealfon, John Poccia, and Ken Pelley  as we presented information about the progress of our partnership to Michael Sneed, Worldwide VP Global Corporate Affairs and Josh Ghiam, J&J Consumer’s Chief Scientific Officer.  Michael spoke most specifically to the market landscape and need for menstrual pads, while Aimee addressed changes that can be made to go! pad packaging that will be low-cost, eye-catching, and eco-friendly.

John, Ken, and Dany described the design and functionality of the equipment being built for SHE.  They were also able to demonstrate Phase I of the equipment that will significantly increase our ability to produce quality banana fluff for our go! pads, as well as increase our production rates.  This will enable us to meet one of our primary goals – providing access to affordable, disposable menstrual pads to 250,000 girls and women by the end of 2017.

Production Manager feeding the fiber into new Phase 1 machinery

Our Production Manager Dany Karemera feeds dry fiber into our new Phase 1 machinery.

As a group, we discussed the overall need for menstrual products in Rwanda and the role that J&J is playing in helping SHE address production related challenges.  We also previewed Phase II and III equipment which will further streamline production and increase throughput tenfold!  This equipment should be in place in our production facility in Ngoma, Rwanda by the end of 2016.

I’m thankful to be working with this dedicated team and gratified to know that SHE is making a difference in the lives of thousands of girls and women.

Driving Innovative Solutions with Johnson and Johnson

As you may know from following our journey, we’ve been working with the External Alliances and Innovation team at Johnson and Johnson to increase our production capacity, drive down our production costs, and develop a highly replicable production model that can be replicated globally.

We’re excited to share with you some of the team members at Johnson and Johnson we are working with to help amplify our growth and impact this year!

Read more about Johnson and Johnson’s work first-hand from project leads Aimee Sealfon, Director of Consumer Solutions – Baby/FemCare, at our Global Strategic Design Office, and Michael Moscherosch, Director of R&D for External Innovation on J&J’s blog here.

Please also share our video about our unique collaboration with J&J.

 

Here’s to a New Year and a new adventure! Please reach out with feedback or questions at supportshe@sheinnovates.com.