- Group of teens from TWGHs Kap Yan Directors’ College are behind the winning proposal for app to help women improve spinal health and confidence
- In its second year, competition organised by French cosmetic brand and NGO Junior Achievement Hong Kong aims to help young women contribute to society
Mimi Huang (from left), Katrina Leung, Catherine Ma, Ruby Lai and Lillian Liu are on the champion team from TWGHs Kap Yan Directors’ College. Photo: JAHKSecondary school student Lillian Lau remembers hunching her back when she was younger because she lacked confidence.
“There are many expectations for how women should be,” said the 17-year-old, who came up with an idea for an app meant to help other women improve their posture. “We think beauty comes from confidence and good health.”
The teen from TWGHs Kap Yan Directors’ College teamed up with four other schoolmates to create a proposal for this app, called HERstory, which took the top prize at the Lancôme Write Her Future 2023 competition last week.
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The team learned that girls tended to start puberty earlier than boys, and this could lead to issues with posture. For example, researchers from Korea University Hospital found that a common form of scoliosis – a sideways curvature of the spine – is more prevalent in girls who experience early puberty than those who don’t.
Lillian and her teammates felt it was important to raise awareness about women’s spinal health and the importance of having good posture.
In their proposed app, users would be able to upload photos of themselves to get suggestions for healthier posture. To offer personalised help, the students envisioned that the app would offer classes and exercises to support a healthy spine.
Their idea was chosen as the champion of the four-month competition organised by French cosmetic brand Lancôme in partnership with local NGO Junior Achievement Hong Kong (JAHK). Their aim is to broaden young women’s horizons and help them contribute to society.
In its second year, the competition saw 100 Form Five and Six girls from 19 schools taking part.
Vivian Choi, CEO of JAHK, commented on the contestants’ impressive ideas: “Girls can shine very brightly … We were very touched by their awareness of social issues. We saw that the young women of Hong Kong have a lot of potential to make an impact on society.”
The programme also incorporated workshops to cultivate entrepreneurial acumen in the students. Industry experts and inspiring female leaders shared their experiences in topics, such as design thinking, project management and presentation skills.
“We had workshops on how to have catchy punchlines when presenting. These skills will be helpful in university,” said Katrina Leung, 18, another student from the winning team.
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The champions will receive a HK$50,000 scholarship to split between the group members, while the first and second runner-up teams will get a scholarship of HK$20,000 and HK$10,000 respectively.
Taking home second place was a group from Ying Wa Girls’ School that proposed using artificial intelligence (AI) to identify counterfeit make-up products.
The second runner-up team from Chinese YMCA Secondary School presented an app idea to address the stigma and lack of knowledge surrounding menstrual care by providing suggestions for period products.
“When I go on social media apps, there are always comments that say things like ‘why are you talking about such a private matter in public?’ under posts discussing periods. We wanted to create a platform where women can talk about periods freely without feeling ashamed,” said Jenny Zeng, a Secondary Five student from the third-place team.
In the group’s survey of 153 women, which was conducted during the competition, the students found that about 60 per cent of respondents said the menstrual products they used did not suit their needs. They also found that many women’s health issues originated from not choosing the right period products.
“Why can’t women talk about their periods openly? It’s a very normal biological process,” said Rainbow Li, another member of the team.
They came up with a plan for an app called Period Angel, which would assist people in choosing suitable period products by providing ratings and detailed information. They also added a social feature for users to post and discuss information about the menstrual cycle.
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Rainbow, a Secondary Five student, reflected on the lessons she learned from taking part in the competition.
“A representative from Watson Group told us that even though she holds a high position in the company, she always reminds herself to stay humble and not to be afraid to start from scratch,” she shared.
“Her speech gave me a lot of encouragement to be bold especially when I doubted myself.”