Curiosity, confidence, and innovation are my tools for bringing change in my community. I live in the low veld, Nkomazi region of Mpumalanga. I have always complained about how hot our summer was. On top of that, the shade from trees, drinking chilled water, and an umbrella never worked on my skin when the hot breeze started heating through my body. I used this problem in my innovation to creating a safe and effective homemade sunscreen.

I started observing people in my community during the day, starting with my own family.
Someone would greet me and say, “It is so hot, my face is developing skin irritations”. They said this without me asking how their skin is. I asked myself what is it that I can do to save my community from dangerous sun rays that commonly cause them skin irritations, early aging, change of natural color and likely a skin cancer called Melanoma. Considering the demand, I decided to focus on skincare.

I analyzed my findings. Firstly, you can use a fan but it ends up blowing hot air right in your face. Secondly, you can sit under a tree but the hot breeze? It strikes really bad, there’s no cool air. Thirdly drinking chilled water does help internally in your body but not externally. I usually sweat as someone pours me with water. An umbrella covers you from the dangerous sun rays, but it doesn’t really stop the heat from the sun penetrating through the skin especially if you are wearing a lacy cloth that shows off your skin.

I made a sample with my three natural ingredients. I know that there are already conventional
sunscreens sold in supermarkets. As a person who believes in new innovation, I saw it as a
good opportunity as a young person to design a product that will be affordable and relevant to
my community. My product was made out of a zinc oxide, coconut and an essential oil. My first course of action to get my project off the ground was to do market research. I went around my community, and asked if they knew about the dangers of the sun and whether they would buy such a product, at what cost, with which smell, and at what size. I got all the information from both young and old.

My interest to continue working on my project is still burning inside me. As I have made a
sample, I am soon going to meet a dermatologist to do product testing. What makes it even
more special is that it has a name. I call it, “Anne Sunrazor Sunscreen”. After the results at the lab, there’s no going back.

I will be an official young entrepreneur selling a legit skin product. I believe in myself, understand a need in my community, have invented something new, have listened to my community’s needs through market research, and lastly, I will deliver the final product.

By that time people will be saying “Yes Please!” to “Homemade?”