ABOUT

Previous iterations of Vagina Academy, Canesten’s brand purpose global education platform, had launched in other parts of the world as a digital school of intimate health, mainly housed on social. There had been Intensivao da PPK in Brazil, as well as other variations in Italy and Australia. The challenge for the UK was how to do this in a progressive market, that had previous activity of doing brand purpose work.

We found that regardless of more progressive attitudes in the UK, knowledge and access to education was still abysmally low - 60% of women in the UK only found out about vaginal infections when they first experienced one. Mainly because only 6% ever find out about health conditions through school or university.

There was, however, an appetite to know more. 68% of young women wished they had learnt about vaginal discharge as a primary indicator of health, and 81% of young women agreed that there should be better vaginal/vulva education in schools.

Against this backdrop of a lack of education, there was also the problem that what did exist contributed to unhealthy narratives. From extremely basic diagrams that either only focused on the reproductive system, or did not fully reflect the reality of real labia and vulvas; to school curriculums that taught about FGM, but not about anatomy and the significance of the clitoris; to resources that taught fear and caution instead of acceptance.

This manifested in culture as candles from Goop which supposedly smelled like Gwyneth Paltrow’s vagina (they smelt of essential oils, not a body). Or influencers being trolled online for having their labia showing in tight sportswear. To the Panty Challenge, where women were posting about having discharge-free underwear at the end of the day as if it was a good thing (it wasn’t).

All this contributed to a culture where sex and sex appeal was at the forefront of popular conversation, yet also highly moderated due to being considered explicit; whilst knowledge of how vaginas and vulvas actually look and behave was buried and hard to find.

So we created The Truth, Undressed.

An education platform which teaches the reality of how our bodies look and behave, with unprecedented access to the naked truth. Removing the metaphors, euphemisms, oversimplification, sexualisation and clothing.

We explored enlightening truths that, despite being need-to-know, get left out or taught inadequately by schools. Either because it isn’t related to reproduction, or is deemed inappropriate for minors.

We cover everything from Anatomy, cultural pressures and labiaplasty, health conditions like BV, Thrush and Vaginismus, pubic hair and the choices that comes with it, to even what a vagina should really smell and taste like.

When relevant to the topic, we showed the reality too: real vulvas, real hair, real discharge. This does two jobs: stops speculation and improves our education, and contributes towards desexualising vulvas and vaginas by presenting them as functioning body parts and not sexual objects. A first in the education world.

Social video ads were developed to drive traffic to the microsite by spreading awareness of the missing information around vaginas and vulvas and its potential consequences. The idea lives across a microsite (because images of real vulvas are not welcome on social media), which supports lesson plans and resources developed with the PSHE Association. These are designed to slot in next to the compulsory RSE curriculum. Meaning students in real schools across the country will finally be taught these missing topics about vaginas.

Results -
- 81k website visits to date
- 1.5k teaching material downloads
-163 million media coverage audience
-3.4 million people reached on social media