Various menstrual products
News

pme donates: Periodensystem e.V.

Maxi Bethge-Lewandoski has a vision: to end period poverty in Germany and promote education around the topic of menstruation. As the founder of the voluntary association Periodensystem e.V., she is committed to giving the topic of menstruation the attention it deserves. In this interview, Maxi gives us an insight into her inspiring work and the challenges involved. 

"The topic of menstruation and period poverty needs more social awareness and attention."

Who is behind the periodic table?

Maxi : We are an association founded and run by volunteers. Each and every one of us pursues the mission of creating more equality and providing low-threshold help and education on period poverty and menstruation. 

Our members have been collecting donations since 2016 to provide those in need with period and hygiene products. We also work with artists, gynecologists, schools and companies to raise awareness. The topic of menstruation and period poverty needs more social awareness and attention.

What does your daily work look like?

Maxi: We distribute period and hygiene items to emergency shelters, schools, organizations and mother and child homes, among others. We are also in close contact with homeless shelters and social institutions. This means we always know what is needed when and can guarantee that the donations arrive where they are needed. We supply emergency shelters such as those run by GEBEWO, Berliner Stadtmission, SKF and DRK directly with menstrual and hygiene products via our crowdfunding page on betterplace.org

Through our online community on Instagram and Facebook, we educate people about period poverty and the topics of menstruation, equality and more in general. 

In regular online live sessions, meet-ups and interviews, our team and community members provide information on topics such as intersexuality, pregnancy, homelessness and sexuality. We also offer workshops for companies, schools and events to raise awareness of the topic among as many social groups as possible.

We make the topic visible on Instagram and cooperate with companies to get it out of the taboo zone.


Access to menstrual products is not a matter of course.

How did you come up with the idea of campaigning for period education?

Maxi : I have always thought about what actually happens to menstruating women when they are in need. People think about food, clothes and sleeping bags first, but not about periods. 

Then I heard about projects in the UK and the USA and created a crowdfunding page on Betterplace.org. I got GEBEWO on board as a partner to buy products for their emergency shelter and that's how Periodensystem came about.

What do you think a fair world looks like when it comes to dealing with menstruation - and what do you think still needs to change to get there?

Maxi: We have five demands: more education through better education policy in schools and drop-in centers, more public toilets as a shelter for menstruating women, better social policy regarding rent policy and wage levels, better health policy with education and research into diseases, and free items in public buildings - like in Scotland.

What challenges do you face most often in your day-to-day work - be it in terms of organization, financing or dealing with social taboos?

Maxi: In the social sector, our work is widely respected and recognized. We are particularly well received in communities that are committed to equality and social justice. But as soon as we move into the corporate sector, we often encounter challenges. Here, the issue is often seen as a "nice to have" - a side issue that doesn't always get the attention it deserves. 

Especially in the current political and economic situation, there is a risk that topics such as menstruation and sex education will once again disappear from the focus of public perception.
At the same time, we are seeing an increasing demand for sustainable period products, which is pleasing, but also places a heavy burden on our financial and logistical capacities.

How do people react when they hear about your work for the first time?

Maxi: We often hear: "That's right, I haven't even thought about that yet."


According to Plan International menstruating people spend on average between 550 and 650 euros on period products per year.

Are there any stories or encounters that have particularly touched you?

Maxi: There are many touching stories, but the words of thanks from people we have been able to help directly are particularly motivating.

You have received a donation of 10,000 euros from pme. What projects have you already been able to implement or would you like to implement with it?

Maxi: The generous donation of 10,000 euros helps us enormously to drive our work forward and distribute sustainable period products exactly where they are most urgently needed. With these funds, we can not only cover acute needs, but also implement projects aimed at long-term education and awareness-raising.

When people want to support you: What helps you most at the moment - apart from financial donations?

Maxi: Please invite us to your companies so that we can talk about this important topic there. Such conversations help to raise awareness of sustainable menstrual products and remove taboos from the topic in professional environments.

You can also support us by sharing our Instagram profile. If you have school-age children, we would be very happy if you could promote the topic in your children's schools. "Ella's World" is a fantastic guide to providing age-appropriate and informal education about menstruation for 9-14 year olds.

Social commitment of the pme Familienservice

The "pme donates" fundraising campaign has been running for four years, giving pme team members the opportunity to nominate charitable organizations in the areas of international development aid, social work, climate and animal protection and culture for a donation, which they actively support. All team members then vote for the organizations they want to support. The organizations with the most votes receive a donation from pme Familienservice. In 2024, six national and international organizations received a total of 50,000 euros in donations.

zero CEO Alexa Ahmad on love

to see is CEO Alexa Ahmad
Leadership & HR

"You have to love your team members" 

"You have to love your team members. Some make it easy for you, and others make it harder," says Alexa Ahmad, CEO of pme Familienservice. She focuses on personal closeness and connection as the key to corporate success and firmly believes that interpersonal relationships within the team are crucial to resolving conflicts constructively, creating a harmonious working environment and being successful in business. 

"It is part of our leadership obligation to learn to love people who make it harder for us"

You attach great importance to personal closeness and solidarity within the company. Why do you pursue this philosophy?  

Alexa Ahmad: There are three reasons for this. One is that I have a heart for our team members and I feel like an employee and team member myself. The second is a socio-political responsibility that each of us bears and also as a company. Thirdly, the business context: I had a case where a team member in my management circle was politically completely at odds with the others, and that led to extreme entanglements. People who were really very reflective could no longer separate the two.

But if we completely reject someone as a person, it is not possible for many people to work together cooperatively. This has an extreme impact on business. Rejection often turns into avoidance or other friction - which almost inevitably leads to poorer results in all areas. It's dangerous when team members don't get along with each other. I say to my team members: "You can go at me if you like, but agree with each other".  

How do you define love and connection in the context of the company?

For me, this means that I have a positive image of team members, customers, partner organizations and suppliers. I say to my managers: "You have to love your team members. Some make it easy for you, others make it harder".

It is part of our leadership obligation to learn to love people who make it difficult for us. This applies to all people with whom we are allowed to work in a professional context.

One example: We had a lot of irritation and trouble with a client company. My colleague didn't want to have anything more to do with our contact person. It was a long-standing contact person of mine. She felt that I 'loved' her - meaning that I understood her situation, her needs and her actions , even if they were contrary to our interests. As a result, we were able to negotiate benevolently together again and find new solutions to the problems, taking into account our very different interests.  

When we make a serious effort to understand why someone ticks one way or another, people sense this. It's about finding a way to meet each other. An attitude that is benevolent and open to new agreements and solutions - that's what I mean by 'love'.  

How do you promote a culture in which your team members support and value each other?  

I do not consider myself to be a good manager and I am constantly trying to improve. I encourage my team members to be open about their interests and to have an open exchange of ideas. It's not unusual for people to come to me and get really upset about another team member. Then I ask: Have you spoken to the person and explained why this is annoying you? In 80 percent of cases, they say: No!  

Any conversation with a critical trigger can fail, no matter how well prepared I am. That is then a conflict. However, over 80 percent of the people I "send back" come to a positive conclusion with their counterpart. And if that doesn't work out, I'm there to support them. If I can't fix it either, we use our team members who are specially trained in conflict resolution.  

"My managers have 'bite inhibitions' on my farm "

In your private life, you live on a farm with lots of animals in the Vogelsberg. What role do the meetings you invite your management team to play there? 

At first, I only introduced these meetings out of desperation. My schedule was tight - I couldn't travel, so they came to me. Now I deliberately hold these meetings on my small self-catering farm. I guess it's because of the rural setting, where there are far fewer heated arguments than in the usual meeting rooms.  

My managers there have "biting inhibitions" (laughs). They behave completely differently in the Vogelsberg than in the office context. It's more harmonious, they and we are more willing to compromise and are more benevolent towards each other.  

What role do celebrations play in team spirit?

A realization from many decades as a manager: I only want us to hire people who are willing to celebrate with us. I now warn my managers: "If you hire someone who refuses to do this on principle, you're asking for trouble". A maximum of four events per year, e.g. team building, sports events, Christmas party, summer party, smaller team events.  

I have found that people who don't want to show up there have a high potential for conflict all year round. potential for conflict in their teams throughout the year. By not taking part, they quickly find themselves in an outsider position, the extent of which they cannot assess. You can't generalize, but that's usually the case.

That doesn't mean that we don't take into consideration if someone has social phobia or is totally stressed out for a year because they have taken on the care of their parents. That's a different matter.  

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What do you think about forming networks in companies, e.g. for singles who are looking for a partner?

That's a trick question because you know that I've been dreaming of a company-supported singles platform for years. Women, and in some cases men, often take high risks to meet potential partners.  

There are so many platforms where we can meet people - for hiking or sports - that are all very anonymous and unsafe. We have been placing au pairs, elderly care and babysitters for decades. Seekers have to register with their company address and can always be assigned to an organization. If necessary, anonymity can be revealed, which is a huge protection.  

We need to get the topics of dating and loneliness out of the dirty corner and offer a safe platform. Employers have an interest in their employees maintaining good, stabilizing relationships, romantic relationships, friendships and professional networks.  

"Loneliness is a major issue for employees"

So should HR focus on relationships, love and sexuality?

Of course, we don't want to question or even analyze the sex lives of our team members. But we need to understand that it's not just the threat of burnout, a sick child or a relative in need of care that puts a strain on our team members. Increasingly, it is loneliness or an unfulfilled desire to have children. This places a heavy burden on people and leads to intense life crises that slowly creep up on them.  

Statistically speaking, loneliness affects precisely those we are currently recruiting, namely young people under 30. 18 to 25-year-olds suffer the worst from loneliness, which shocked me. They are just leaving home, becoming self-employed and then come home to an empty apartment in the evening. This is exactly where our platform would come in. 

Apart from such a platform, which does not yet exist, companies can already set up networks for target groups today. This is nothing new! Company sports groups have been around for over 100 years and groups for single parents or women's networks for decades.  

The challenge is to sense which group offers would be used. For example, there are unfortunately very few e-sports groups*, cooking groups are still very popular, or what about a group for office dog owners?

The basis for everything is that the company - and as its representatives, the managers - do not see it as a danger if their team members meet outside of working hours. That they recognize the great positive effect of team members getting to know each other better and networking.

*An e-sports group is a digital sports club: People train together, develop tactics and compete against other teams online in video game competitions - sometimes even in tournaments with real prizes and live broadcasts. Team spirit, technique and tactics take center stage - the thrill replaces the physical sweat.

Lost in Space: The pme Survival Guide for uncertain times

Do you sometimes feel "lost" in crisis mode? With our initiative "Lost in Space? The pme Survival Guide for uncertain times", we provide our customers with valuable tools for work, love and ageing.