Community Partner Spotlight: Your Yuckies

Wherever you might be – hiking, camping or at home – periods and period care are highly personal. It is important that that you stay comfortable and safe, while also doing your best to minimize any potential impacts that might come from having your period in a place without access to the usual facilities. Managing toiletry supplies and waste created while on your period and doing so in a sustainable way is something that can pose a challenge for anyone who menstruates. Thats’s why mother and daughter duo, Dani and Becca Titterton, decided to create YourYuckies.

As avid hikers and backpackers, Dani and Becca found it difficult to manage their hygiene needs on their multi-day trips. While personal toiletry supplies are not yucky, leaving them on the trail is. They wanted a convenient, discreet and sustainable solution for handling your period regiment that helps everyone feel more confident to get outside and have fun, even during that time of the month. YourYuckies are black, corn based bags that can be used to stash dirty toiletries such as wipes, tampons and used toilet paper.

We spoke to Becca and Dani recently about their accomplishments and how the Leave No Trace partnership has helped to support their company.

What are some of your organization’s biggest accomplishments that you are excited about or proud of?

We are very excited about providing a plant-based alternative for managing bio-breaks outdoors. Our company has two key missions that drive what we do: 1 – Reducing our environmental footprint and 2 – Encouraging inclusivity in the outdoor community.

We are passionate about keeping the trails clean by following Leave No Trace principles, as well as normalizing the conversation around menstrual health. We feel that having your period should not be a barrier to enjoying the outdoors. Education is key to realizing these goals and empowering people to feel confident in their outdoor skills and have fun!

• Solve carry in/carry out toiletry waste with a convenient, non-plastic, sustainable solution
• Normalize talking about menstrual health especially during awkward young adult years
• Empower outdoor enthusiasts through education to feel confident managing their hygiene needs responsibly

One area that we feel we can really make an impact is the work we are just starting to do with overnight summer camps, especially those with a sustainability mission. We have begun working with them as a great opportunity for the product to help campers, especially those who menstruate, manage their hygiene needs and feel comfortable while doing it. Helping to educate young hikers early on will build a confident, inclusive and environmentally aware hiking community.

What made you join Leave No Trace as a Community Partner?

Our company came into being by wanting an easier, more sustainable way to carry in/carry out while enjoying the outdoors. The Leave No Trace organization has been the leader in driving educational awareness, especially with The 7 Principles. As a company with a shared mission, we wanted to be a Community Partner to help spread this important message.

How does partnering with Leave No Trace add to the well-being of your business?

We look to Leave No Trace as the authority on outdoor sustainability education based on their years of research. We use Leave No Trace learnings and principles as guidance on how we word our educational messages to make sure we are giving out the best expert advice.

Can you share some ways that YourYuckies is incorporating Leave No Trace into your work? 

Our product is built around being environmentally responsible in managing bio-breaks and hygiene needs while outdoors. We promote Leave No Trace principles on our social media posts and product use.

What is one tip you would like to share with other small businesses for incorporating Leave No Trace into their work or programming? 

We have seen, especially in our work on social media, that people have a very short attention span. The Leave No Trace 7 Principles are a great way to promote Leave No Trace because they are short, sweet, to the point and easy to understand. Even if you focus on just one of the principles at a time, depending on your work or programming, the messaging is effective.

What do you value most about your partnership with Leave No Trace? 

We value our shared mission of protecting the environment, especially through education. Leave No Trace has some of the best educational resources and messaging and we value the ability as partners to share this with the YourYuckies community and beyond.

You can learn more about how YourYuckies here and find more information about practicing Leave No Trace during your period in our Period Guide for the Outdoors.

Click here to learn more about joining as a Leave No Trace Community Partner. Already a partner and want to be featured in an upcoming Spotlight? Send an email to Community Engagement Manager, Faith Overall, at [email protected].