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By: Sarah Maznavi, President of the Bridge Club

The Bridge Club proudly organized a special assembly on Wednesday, 8th October, for Eco Week under the theme “Keep Learning.” Eco week focused on celebrating awareness, action, and education toward protecting our planet. It was a wonderful opportunity to remind ourselves that caring for our planet starts with understanding it better and staying curious about how we can make a difference.

I, Sarah Maznavi had the pleasure of welcoming everyone and introducing our amazing guest speaker, Ms. Shanuki de Alwis a Sri Lankan Advocacy and Cause Communications Consultant with over 23 years of experience in advertising, brand communications, and social advocacy. Ms. Shanuki has dedicated her career to driving meaningful conversations and inspiring positive change, and her talk truly reflected that.

She spoke to us about the #BleedGood Movement by the Selyn Foundation, which focuses on menstrual equity and sustainability. Through her inspiring presentation,
“Period-Positive Workplace,” she showed us how small steps like using reusable fabric sanitary products and spreading awareness can have a huge impact on the environment and people’s well-being .

We learned that in Sri Lanka, around half of women and girls face period poverty, and single-use pads cause serious environmental harm. The #BleedGood initiative helps tackle these issues by providing reusable menstrual products, conducting educational workshops, and encouraging workplaces and schools to become more period positive and inclusive.

After her inspiring talk, Malaika Butani gave the vote of thanks, expressing our gratitude to Ms. Shanuki for her eye-opening session. She also shared what the Bridge Club has been up to from The Pad Project (making pads available on every floor), to raising awareness about racial slurs, and running Meet ’n’ Eat and Taboo Talk sessions. This term, we’re so excited to be partnering with the #BleedGood Movement to continue our journey of learning and creating meaningful change together.

We ended the assembly by presenting Ms. Shanuki with a small token of appreciation on behalf of the Bridge Club. It was a truly inspiring morning that reminded us that learning, compassion, and action go hand in hand and that even small steps can lead to big impact.

This assembly perfectly captured Eco Week’s theme for Wednesday “Keep Learning.” We chose to focus on menstrual equity and sustainability because it’s an issue that connects directly to climate adaptation. In Sri Lanka alone, around 963 million single-use pads are discarded every year, creating nearly 14,445 metric tons of waste, enough to fill over 660 shipping containers annually. Most of this waste ends up being burned, dumped, or landfilled, releasing toxic gases and microplastics that harm our soil, water, and air. By learning about projects like #BleedGood, we understood that sustainability isn’t only about trees or recycling, it’s also about social awareness, equity, and rethinking everyday habits. The assembly was a meaningful reminder that true sustainability begins with awareness and the willingness to keep learning.