When Barclays Hong Kong collaborated with LUÜNA to educate its staff on menstrual health at the workplace, the aim was to create lasting cultural change. For Rachel Huf, Chief Executive of Barclays Hong Kong, the initiative aligned with a long-standing commitment to gender equity in the workplace.

LUÜNA, a Hong Kong-based startup, is dedicated to ending period poverty across Asia by delivering education programs on menstrual health and gender equity, providing sustainable period care products and installing dispensers in businesses and schools. Jayme Walker, who has been with LUÜNA for two years, initially as Community Manager and now in business development, is at the forefront of connecting with corporations to implement LUÜNA’s initiatives and foster conversations about menstrual health.

“People often think period care in the office is just a nice gesture. However, from the research we’ve been doing, menstrual health can significantly impact people at work through lost work hours or absenteeism caused by symptoms that make it difficult to stay in the office or even come in at all,” Jayme explains. “Our initiatives help retain employees and make people feel like the company cares.”

Rachel sees initiatives like these as essential to building inclusive workplaces. “When I became Chief Executive, women across the organisation approached me and said, ‘You can help represent us,’” she says. “I knew I had a responsibility to create a more inclusive workplace.” LUÜNA’s workshops at Barclays have been attended by both male and female managers to better understand how menstrual health can affect team members and what supportive management looks like in practice.

The LUÜNA initiative is part of a broader culture shift Rachel has championed across Barclays. Commencing back in 2006, working with eleven other women, she launched the Barclays Asia Pacific Women’s Initiative Network. Their research and advocacy led to the introduction of 22 weeks of paid primary caregiver leave for Barclays employees across the Asia Pacific region. More importantly, employees are actively encouraged to take full advantage of family-supportive policies.

“What I had seen in other organisations is they had great policies, but sometimes there’s this sort of undercurrent that you’re not encouraged to use the policies. I knew what we really need to do from a cultural perspective is to show people and encourage people to use the policies,” says Rachel.

The education sessions organised by Barclays with LUÜNA had already made a significant impact when, at a Women’s Day event in Hong Kong, Rachel and Jayme discovered they had something else in common—they were both alumni of Emmanuel College. The realisation came as a surprise and added a personal layer to their professional connection. Their work shares a belief that education on the importance of menstrual health and support in the workplace can help drive systemic cultural shifts.

“Workshops and open conversations in the workplace are key to breaking down the stigma around menstrual health,” says Jayme. “When people feel safe discussing these issues with their teams and managers, it creates real cultural change, one that supports wellbeing, improves retention, and shows employees they’re genuinely cared for.”

Rachel comments, “I think it’s very important when you’re trying to promote equity and inclusion, you look at the framework when you’re operating in each country and do what you can within that framework to promote gender equity,” she says.

Reflecting on how others can help build more equitable workplaces, Jayme offers a clear call to action.

“I feel like people need to then take the initiative to make it happen. The only way that companies are going to change is if people within those companies advocate for that change,” she says.

In 2025 Emmanuel College is celebrating 50 years since women were admitted to the College. If you know of an inspirational female-identifying alumnus, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at alumni@emmanuel.uq.edu.au.