This week we love WaterAid's use of video in its 'If men had periods' campaign, Missing People's annual Big Tweet and British Museum's use of Periscope. 

WaterAid: If men had periods the world would be a very different (and funnier) place

To raise awareness of the importance of menstrual health issues in the developing world, where girls miss out on education because of a lack of suitable facilities, WaterAid is challenging people to think about how the world would be different if men had periods.

The charity has identified a number of key differences if men had periods including “the monthly bleed would be a sign of manliness” and “tampon adverts would be turbo-charged” and has produced three funny videos to illustrate this.

A WaterAid survey in the UK found 70 per cent of women feel that there is a stigma attached to periods, with one in five saying that if men had periods there would be religious ceremonies to celebrate a first period and welcome him into manhood.

The charity is asking people to sign its Make it Happen petition urging the government argue for the inclusion of access to clean water and safe toilets in the sustainable development goals when they are agreed at an international summit in September.

Barbara Frost, chief executive of WaterAid, said: “Every day 800m women have their period, and yet most of us consider it an embarrassing and taboo subject. There are even elaborate euphemisms to avoid saying the word ‘period’. So we have had a bit of fun trying to imagine whether attitudes would be different if men had periods.

"Menstruation is an important women’s issue. One in three women around the world do not have access to a toilet during their periods and having to find a safe place after dark is both undignified and risky.

"Millions more suffer discrimination because of beliefs that they are ‘contaminated’ or ‘impure’. 

"Stigma about menstruation means women do not seek the help and information they need, while the lack of hygiene facilities in schools is a major reason for young girls dropping out of education when they reach puberty.”

Why we love it: WaterAid has presented a really serious issue in a fun and engaging way that will hopefully get men and women talking about an important and often overlooked issue.

The Big Tweet for Missing Children

Since 2012 Missing People has held its Big Tweet on International Missing Children’s day (25 May).

The charity posts missing children’s appeals every 30 minutes for 24 hours using the hashtag #TheBigTweet and in its first year two children were found as a result of the appeals.

So far this year three children have already been found and appeals attracted 95,000 retweets. The appeal has been supported by Stephen Fry, J K Rowling, Simon Cowell and Perrie Edwards from Little Mix.

Why we love it: In 2012 Missing People found something that worked and has successfully repeated and improved the event each year.

 

 

 

British Museum using Periscope

On Thursday evening the British Museum live streamed a tour of its Greek art exhibition, ‘Defining Beauty’. The programme was hosted by historian, television presenter and early adopter of Periscope, Dan Snow.

Periscope is a live video streaming app for iPhones and Android devices and was recently bought by Twitter. Broadcasts are automatically shared with Twitter followers, as well. During broadcasts people can tap the screen to indicate that they ‘love’ it and little hearts will dot across the screen. Viewers can also ask questions and make comments that appear on screen during the broadcast.

Chris Michaels, head of digital and publishing at the British Museum, said: “As a museum of the world for the world, we are always looking to experiment with new ways to share our exhibitions with the world, both the huge audiences who do visit us, and the audiences that cannot. Mobile technology and social media offer incredible ways to do that, and Periscope is a brilliant new innovation. The immediacy and intimacy of this way of broadcasting can help bring the wonder of Greek sculpture to a new audience.”

Viewers came from all around the world including Norway, Libya, Italy and America. The broadcast is available for a limited time afterwards, meaning Spy was able to catch-up with it this morning, and a recording will be posted on the museum's Facebook page.

Why we love it: Periscope is a really interactive platform and it’s great to see charities starting to experiment with it and offering viewers a discount to visit the exhibit featured. British Museum has promised more broadcasts, which are eagerly anticipated by Spy and any other history-geeks-come-social-media addicts.