A delegation of students from Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) won an award at the World Young Inventors Exhibition (WYIE) 2024. The delegation, consisting of seven members, received a silver medal and won in the biotechnology category of the competition.
The UGM delegation, named RoShell, includes Nazira Aydin Hatif, Agus Syahputra, Adha Maula Effendi, Faaza Aulia Rahman, Anzilya Nurul Adha, Fakhira Althafia Elfananda, and Viony Octavia, all students from the UGM Faculty of Pharmacy.
In this competition, they competed against 700 teams from various countries, such as Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and others.
Nazira Aydin Hatif explained that the World Young Inventors Exhibition (WYIE) is an international innovation competition and exhibition organized by the Malaysian Invention and Design Society (MINDS).
The competition, held from May 16–18, 2024, at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center in Malaysia, was attended by young innovators from school to university levels from various countries.
“In this competition, RoShell focused on the theme of waste utilization into products,” said Hatif at the UGM campus on Monday (June 24).
Hatif said this topic was chosen due to the increasing waste problem, which significantly impacts the environment. RoShell sought to find potential ways to transform waste into products.
As the team coordinator, Hatif explained that the waste used in their product was seashells. RoShell considers seashells a common fishery commodity in Indonesia.
“This waste is commonly found in seafood restaurants, markets, and even household consumption,” she explained.
Hatif elaborated that seashell waste has been limited to crafts and has yet to be widely utilized for other products.
Using their pharmaceutical knowledge, RoShell transformed seashell waste into a cosmetic product, a body scrub. Body scrubs are popular cosmetic products among the public.
Adha Maula Effendi added that body scrubs are cosmetic products used to clean the body thoroughly. The seashell waste utilized is specifically from blood cockles (Anadara granosa).
“These cockles were chosen because they are widely consumed and have high calcium carbonate content,” said Effendi, a team member.
He mentioned that calcium carbonate is a key ingredient in body scrubs to help remove dead skin cells.
“Because of its content, blood cockles were chosen as the main ingredient for our body scrub,” Effendi continued.
Another team member, Faaza Aulia Rahman, revealed that in RoShell’s innovation, blood cockle waste was combined with roselle extract (Hibiscus sabdariffa). Roselle extract contains bioactive compounds such as anthocyanins, flavonoids, and ascorbic acid.
“By adding these compounds to the body scrub formulation, we hope to enhance the benefits of the body scrub,” Rahman added.
Agus Syahputra disclosed that RoShell worked hard to prepare this research. From brainstorming ideas to product development, each stage presented its challenges. RoShell’s preparation began at the end of 2023. One of the most challenging parts was finding the correct formulation.
“It needs to be just right to ensure the product is effective and comfortable to use,” he explained.
Viony Octavia said that RoShell’s creation became a highlight among the innovations at the exhibition. Many visitors were curious and eager to see the RoShell body scrub product.
Many tried the RoShell body scrub, and some were interested enough to purchase it.
Unsurprisingly, the body scrub product also received praise from the judges. The product is expected to spur innovations in waste utilization, especially seashell waste.
RoShell is grateful for the opportunity to participate and succeed in this competition as the only delegation from UGM. They are proud to have brought honor to UGM on the international stage.
“We all hope that the RoShell body scrub will be widely used by the public someday,” Octavia said.
Octavia also hopes that RoShell’s experience will inspire other students to continue creating and innovating. The team hopes that more UGM delegations will participate in similar competitions with various innovations and creative ideas.
Author: Agung Nugroho