Five Ways to Celebrate World Breastfeeding Week #WBW15: August 1-7

World Breastfeeding Week is just days away. This year, the theme is “Let’s Make It Work,” and the focus is on supporting all working women who want to breastfeed. Help spread the word about the benefits of breastfeeding and about the importance of accommodating breastfeeding moms at work.

Here are five things you can do to celebrate and support World Breastfeeding Week:

1. Start letting everyone know about the Week, and related resources and information, by using hashtag #WBW15 in your social media activity. See BreastfeedLA’s sample posts and other tips.
2. Kick off the week at MILK: An Infant Feeding Conference, July 31 and August 1 at the LA Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. The conference is designed for parents, doctors, midwives, doulas, lactation consultants, infant feeding counselors, dietitians, nutritionists, and all those passionate about infant feeding.
3. August 4: Chat it up on Twitter! Join First 5 LA​ and Breastfeed LA to discuss all things breastfeeding. Use #First5Chat to find it — and to help promote it in your own social media posts. RSVP here to qualify for prize giveaways!
4. Advocate for a more breastfeeding-friendly workplace — and help nursing moms self-advocate.
   • Use the information and resources in LA Best Babies Network’s Breastfeeding-Friendly Workplace Policies (also available in Spanish).
   • See Supporting Nursing Moms at Work: Employer Solutions, an initiative of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
   • Also for employers: Check out the tool kit for businesses and these WIC breastfeeding resources for employers. Print and display this poster on “the business case for breastfeeding.”
   • For employees: See the employee’s guide to breastfeeding and working, this guide with checklists for moms, and BreastfeedLA’s Self-Advocacy Tool Kit.
5. Know the law. California has the strongest legal protections for breastfeeding women, but there are also federal lactation laws. Here’s a Dept. of Labor fact sheet that women can share with their supervisors, and here’s a BreastfeedLA resource that covers both federal and California law.

When the week is over, you don’t need to lose the momentum because August is National Breastfeeding Month. And when August is over, it’s time to remember that you really don’t need an excuse to promote the benefits of breastfeeding.

A key component of the Welcome Baby program is support and assistance with breastfeeding. Learn more about Welcome Baby and find a participating hospital here.

Do you have anything to add to the list? Please share it in a comment below.