By Phuong Mai, VietNamNet Bridge
High school students in Saigon holding soap.
The initiative by three high school students to make soap with used cooking oil has got the third prize at the 2013 Innovation Competition for the Saigon’s youth.
The three students are the 11th graders of the Gia Dinh High School – Nguyen Khanh Uyen, Nguyen Huynh Thuy Giang and Ho Minh Quang.
The initiative of making soap is not a new idea one. However, the success of the students in making soap with used cooking oil, which can help protect the environment, persuaded the jury board to give the third prize to the innovative work.
Especially, the environment friendly product can be made at low costs and can be used right in school, which can help improve students’ awareness of the green lifestyle.
The idea of making soap with used cooking oil was raised when the three students found a big volume of cooking oil left at the school’s canteen after the cooks fried potatoes and prepared meals.
The students then thought it would be harmful to the people’s health and the environment, if the oil is thrown away or re-used.
“We thought that if the oil left after cooking can be used for making soap through a chemical reaction we learned in our lesson, we can get the best out of the oil, thus practicing thriftiness. Meanwhile, the product is friendly to the environment,” Uyen said.
The three students decided that their idea needed to be turned into reality. They persuaded the cooks not to use vegetable oil many times and to give them the oil after cooking.
Read the full story by Phuong Mai, VietNamNet Bridge.