They present the web application Zikloan, the first that allows knowledge and monitoring of the menstrual cycle in Basque. Iametza has developed the progressive web application and Ara!Guardia Física has prepared the contents. There are several current applications for menstruation monitoring, but Zikloan has its fundamental differences. For example, Enara I. Domínguez Ara!The body member has assured that they will not sell user data to any organization or company, as other acquaintances do.

They have attached importance to data protection: “Ara!Corporal Ione [F. Zabaleta] and I will be the only ones who will have access to the data, and the goal will be that in the future they will be used for research that has a feminist vision,” explains I. Domínguez. What are menstruations like in Euskal Herria? This is the question they have had to Ara!Since in 2018 they began working on the topic and running the body workshops, they believe it is a good tool to find the answer in the Cycle, to collect information by age and by territory: “In the menstrual process, context influences a lot, and as language makes us, it is very important for us to have only Basque.” Those who so far have been tracking the cycle in Spanish will be able to do so in Basque in the direction Zikloan.eus.

This linguistic gap was perceived by Iametza's workers about five years ago, and as they work with technology, they began to respond to this need and shape it through the web application. Eli Pombo, member of Iametza, explains what the progressive web application is: “Without a downloadable app, it has been prepared to use it as an app and technology allows you to use all the tools of an app.” She points out that Iametzan is betting on progressive web applications and that they see it more appropriate to make improvements in the future.

Adapted to the feminist approach

Pombo thanks Ara!La Golondrina and Ion of her body who “crossed the road” and, once known their critical vision, adapt to her project in mind. I. Domínguez states that the project was revised and integrated into the application of feminist knowledge and vision that for years had been studied in the association. This information has been collected in the “Knowledge” section, divided into articles.

Among others, the authors have ensured that it is a tool of “observation” rather than “control” of the cycle, although they are aware that the “very thin line” is I. Domínguez warns that: “We know that in the cycle there are four archetypes and we are told that the cycle has to have a certain shape. It has also happened to us to realize that you don’t go there, and that drives self-judgment.” They wanted to move away from it and offer them a more neutral view, as well as the reflections and nuances to take into account in the web application.

To transmit the proximity behind the screens, Ara!They have made direct contact with body members and I. Domínguez comments that they intend to collect contributions and make new versions, as at the moment it is basic in the Cycle.

How to name the rule in Basque

Ara!They have emphasized from the body that we have a “collective challenge” to find the right words in Basque in relation to the rule. He says that we use words translated from Spanish and from the point of view of fertility. “The rule is not yet a very comfortable subject and, furthermore, if words are not comfortable to use, it is harder to talk about the issue.” They encourage experts and experts to make proposals related to language.

“Fertility apparatus, uterus... “Why do we call them that?” asks I. Domínguez. He believes that what is culturally received is that the cycle and menstruation are exclusively oriented towards fertility, and that the use of these words in schools from childhood deepens in it. The creators of Zikloan have claimed the need for reflection and change, and have put on the table the most difficult idea to explain: not only to get pregnant, but ovulation is essential to be healthy.