The Challenge
Romanian women haven’t had access to state-funded contraception for 15 years. Vulnerable groups, rural, low-income and young women are disproportionately affected by this gap in reproductive healthcare. Romania leads the EU in teenage pregnancies and ranks last in preventive reproductive health policies. Despite alarming data, political efforts to fix the situation has been minimal. At the same time, female visibility is low even in symbolic areas: only one banknote features a woman: the 20 lei bill. This was the cultural insight we built on. With no budget allocated for contraception but a massive need for public pressure, we created an intervention at the intersection of feminism, activism, and economics. The Coalition for Gender Equality, made out of 15 NGOs, launched the “Bills of Contraception” campaign to expose both the healthcare crisis and the symbolic absence of women from public life. By redesigning the 20 lei note to include a QR code leading to a petition, we used an everyday object as a manifesto for reproductive rights. The goal was to drive awareness and force government action at a critical legislative key point: when the new budget for 2025 was being discussed. The cultural and political urgency made this the right message, at the right time, in the right medium.
The Solution
The creative idea was to hijack one of the most overlooked yet powerful printed objects in daily life, a banknote, and turn it into a manifesto for reproductive rights. Romania’s 20 lei bill, the only note featuring a woman, became both a symbol and a solution. We redesigned it with a QR code linking to a petition and distributed it through public health clinics and family planning cabinets, spaces where the absence of free contraception is felt most directly. The idea crossed boundaries between finance, public health, and activism. It turned currency into a tool for civic engagement, sparking engagament with the civil society. It transcended the original challenge by not only raising awareness, but actively influencing policy. The banknote ceased to be just a symbol; it became a tool for societal change.
