Using our Strengths: Establishing a Community-academic Partnership to Tackle Menstrual Health Concerns in Philadelphia

**Published in Progress in Community Health Partnerships (PCHP) 17.1. All rights reserved.** ABSTRACT Background: Menstrual health is a secretive, stigmatized, and understudied topic in the US. To begin addressing this stigma requires understanding menstrual communication patterns in the community; however, few studies have applied community-based participatory research to explore menstrual health stigma. Objectives: To describe the team and lessons learned building a community-academic partnership aimed to explore menstrual health stigma and communication in Philadelphia, PA. Partnership: A menstrual health non-profit and a social-reproductive epidemiologist forged a community-academic partnership using a unique program that encourages partnerships between researchers and community organizations. Lessons Learned: Three lessons are described: (1) take time to build trust; (2) be patient and respectful navigating challenges and unforeseen difficulties; (3) ensure equitable distribution of project resources and benefits. Conclusion: Our partnership accomplished impactful work by acknowledging the unique resources, skills, and networks that each partner possessed.