Male Contraceptive Initiative advocates for the research and development of new methods of male birth control.
Advocacy is crucial to address this challenge by raising awareness, influencing policy, and mobilizing support for male contraception research and development. By advocating for increased funding and public support, we can accelerate the development of new male birth control options and empower individuals to make informed choices about their reproductive health.
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To bridge the gap between demand and funding, we're working to educate and engage the public. We collect and share people's perspectives on male birth control and create accessible educational materials that explain the science behind male contraception and its potential impact on society.
These materials are distributed through a robust collection of resources: |
Advocating for Male Contraception
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A Gendered Burden: The Need for Male Birth ControlThe widespread availability of female birth control methods, including pills, IUDs, patches, and injectables, has created a skewed perception that birth control is primarily a woman's responsibility.
This gendered burden has contributed to a lack of investment in male birth control research and development. Despite the misconception that men are uninterested in birth control, studies consistently show significant demand for effective and convenient options. Male Contraceptive Initiative's research indicates that at least 17 million men in the United States alone are seeking alternatives to condoms and vasectomy. It's time to address this imbalance and provide men with the same range of birth control choices available to women. |
MCI's Male Contraception Myth Busting
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What are MCI's advocacy efforts to support male birth control?
It will take more than just great science to get new male birth control methods to market. We created this section to highlight some of the larger advocacy and outreach efforts we invest in and conduct in order to illustrate the demand for, and potential impact of, male birth control.
Working to understand needs and perceptions to develop a menu of male contraceptives that meets everyone’s needs.
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Our grantee Planned Parenthood North Central States (PPNCS) provides health care to nearly 115,000 people and health education to more than 99,000 people across a five-state region (Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota) in the United States.
With MCI’s support, PPNCS will engage in critical market research activities by using mixed methods surveys to engage critical stakeholders on their reproductive health needs and desires in hopes that this will help inform research and product development activities. |
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Our Consumer Research Study was the largest survey in the United States in the past decade exclusive to sexually active men ages 18-44 and focused on developing a better understanding of their attitudes, needs and motivations regarding the future of male birth control.
Developing a keen understanding of the family planning interests of communities domestically and internationally is a critical component of our market research activities. Our support of market research activities helps our grantees better understand the needs of those they’re developing contraceptives for, while framing the demand for male birth control methods in the general public. |
Supporting men and women preventing pregnancy as a unit.
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Our Shared Risk publication advocates for creating a new ethical framework for assessing risks and benefits for new forms of male birth control.
Currently, the risks associated with pregnancy focus solely on the physical. As women are the only ones capable of physically bringing a baby to term, current thinking prevents a fair assessment of the risks men face when it comes to pregnancy. Our work is a necessary step towards reframing the concept of risk such that it creates a mandate for providing more and better male birth control methods. |
Facilitating a commercial pathway for male contraception driven by collaboration, transparency, and the public good.
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Our Ideation Events bring together diverse, multi-disciplinary groups of subject matter experts in order to identify opportunities and challenges for the male birth control industry, while driving collaboration and innovation.
Our initial ideation events have greatly aided in developing a shared understanding of how best to move the male birth control field forward, and helped us to create a network of collaborators to champion “Team Science” as a development mandate. Our support allows participants to engage in innovative problem-solving activities as they build professional relationships to help accelerate their work. |
Fostering a community of practice that brings together expertise from across the spectrum to get male birth control to market faster.
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Our Lemonade Stand Webinar Series explores various aspects of the work necessary to develop the next generation of non-hormonal, reversible male contraception.
Launched in response to the demand amongst the research community for more opportunities to engage and collaborate, our monthly webinars convene subject matter experts and the general public alike. Our support helps facilitate expanding people’s understanding of the male birth control field, demystify the science behind male contraception, and allow people to engage with each other more intimately. |
Producing an engaging audio experience featuring subject matter experts and everyday people investigating the past, present, and future of male birth control.
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Our audio series “Intended” is the only podcast solely dedicated to exploring the fascinating world of male birth control.
The series features interviews with a holistic set of stakeholders representing all facets of male birth control research and development, as well as the people seeking additional male methods of contraception in an effort to make the science of male contraceptives more accessible while also illustrating the interest in and demand for male birth control. |
Creating an educational platform that provides people with the foundational understanding of male reproductive biology and contraception.
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Our Male Reproduction & Contraception primers provide an introduction to male reproductive biology that is easy-to-understand and engaging.
The primers feature concise overviews of the individual components of the male reproductive system that afford readers the opportunity to better understand how this system works, as well as how it can be disrupted in order to develop the next generation of male contraception. Providing this foundational knowledge is critical to ensuring people’s understanding of the importance of these upcoming contraceptives. |
Developing a database of potential targets that illustrates the breadth of male contraception research and development.
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MCI’s Non-hormonal, Reversible Male Contraception Database features all of the non-hormonal male birth control targets that have been identified to date, including those that MCI is directly supporting financially.
The database is a “living” entity that we update in an ongoing basis in an effort to keep the research community and general public abreast of the promising work that could lead to next generation male contraceptives. It seeks to answer two of the most pressing questions in the male birth control field: “What potential male contraceptives are out there?” and “When will they be available?” |
Designing a system of tools that facilitate creative brainstorming while developing a sense of shared empathy.
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MCI’s Personas are fictional characters created to represent different user and beneficiary types that might use a product (e.g., male birth control) in a similar way.
These personas are especially useful during ideation activities for new male contraceptives and related services as they allow for the extrapolation of user preferences to inform attributes, thereby removing some of the ambiguity inherent in new product design. |
Sharing an inclusive understanding of the needs of traditionally underserved communities.
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MCI’s LGBTQIA+ content seeks to take into consideration the diversity of interests and needs of this community when developing the next generation of male contraception.
Today’s youth will be tomorrow’s users of these new methods. Given that around 5% of young adults in the United States today identify as either transgender or nonbinary, there is a clear need to move beyond the gender binary in order to ensure future contraceptives meet a diversity of needs and preferences. On this page, we share details about different communities within the LGBTQIA+ spectrum in an effort to ensure their needs are understood and accounted for. |
Making a clear connection between male contraception and the world’s most pressing challenges.
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We studied the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to identify ways in which new methods of male birth control can help the world achieve each of them.
The SDGs are a collection of 17 interlinked global goals designed to be a "blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all", and were set up by the United Nations to be achieved by the year 2030. Through our work, we provide direct connections between each of the goals and male contraception. Through this, we illustrate the potential, incredibly positive impact that new methods of male birth control can have in achieving our shared sustainability goals. |
Creating a multimedia learning journey that facilitates a holistic understanding of male contraception.
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We collaborated with a team of students to develop a Digital Manual containing learning modules that empower students and the general public with the information necessary to understand the importance of male contraception.
MCI worked with Masters of Public Health students from the University of Michigan’s School of Public Health to create a fun, interactive educational system in order to provide additional learning opportunities for engaged audiences. Our co-created Digital Manual allows people to engage with the information they need and learn at their own pace. |
What YOU can do to help!
Join the Movement: become a part of the growing movement advocating for male birth control. Explore these opportunities to get involved: share your personal experiences with birth control and the importance of male options, volunteer your time to contribute to our advocacy efforts and help spread the word, donate to support our work and help fund research and development, or partner with us to create a more equitable reproductive landscape.
Together, we can (and will!) make a difference.
Together, we can (and will!) make a difference.
Talk to Friends & Family
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We create our resources in order to help educate the general public about the importance of male birth control in an effort to empower people to advocate for the cause. A great way of doing so is to reach out to your friends and family to start discussions around male birth control. This will help ensure people are thinking about male contraception and prepare them for the inevitable day when more male methods are available.
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Engage with Elected Officials
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There is legislation that governs contraception at the local, state, and national levels. Reach out to your elected representatives and let them know that male birth control is important to you, and request that they support measures that would increase funding for male contraception research and development.
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Share Your Perspectives
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We utilize surveys to gather information on a range of topics related to male birth control, and capitalize on the responses for each to create outreach and educational collateral such as blog content, videos, and social media posts. Add your voice to the conversation by visiting this space often and responding to the surveys we add on an ongoing basis!
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Help Create Social Media Content
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We endeavor to engage with as diverse an audience as possible, so we are active on many of the most popular social media platforms. As a small team, we are limited in our ability to create meaningful content that engages with a wide range of audiences on a daily basis. A quick and easy way that you can help us address this is by sharing your creativity, and we encourage people to reach out to us with any ideas you have for content!
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Collaborate with MCI
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As a small nonprofit, we rely on the support of external partners to accomplish our vision of “Reproductive Autonomy for All”. This extends beyond funding to include everything from conducting the scientific research for new male contraceptive targets, engaging with us through internships and fellowships, serving as advisors on various working groups, and more. We know it will take all of us working together to bring new male contraceptives to market, and we encourage you to reach out to us with any ideas you have on how we can engage with you.
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Show Your Support
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Our vision for the future is “Reproductive Autonomy for All”. More than a vision statement, though, we believe this is a rallying cry to build a movement around as achieving such a lofty goal benefits all people as well as the planet. You can show your support for the cause along with financial support to MCI by purchasing some of our branded merchandise in our store.
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