A group of third-year HR students at SETU are hoping to combat hygiene poverty locally.
The Hygiene Hub was set up by three students in Dublin in 2019, with hopes of a permanent collection point being set up in Waterford.
Anna Gilsenan is one of the students at SETU launching the campaign locally and says people continue to suffer from hygiene poverty.
"There were three college students in Dublin who decided to set up the Hygiene Hub. They noticed that there was a gap and people were suffering from hygiene poverty, where you wouldn't really think of hygiene as being poverty, but you would think of food or clothes. They then decided to set up the hygiene hub and it took off from there.
"Families that are less well off and struggling financially have to come to a decision if they are going to choose food or hygiene and they obviously have to chose food, especially when there are children involved, you have to prioritise food over everything so a lot of the time hygiene gets forgotten."
The Hygiene Hub was founded by three women, Ciára Dalton, Sorcha Killian, and Rosie McDonagh, with backgrounds in human rights, start-ups, and fundraising.
Since its inception, over 60,000 products have been donated to those in need.
The Waterford Hygiene Hub will officially be launched this coming Wednesday at SETU with collections points across the campus focusing on the Library and Student Union.
The group of students is also calling on local businesses to support the initiative, as the students continue to seek a permanent location to collect hygiene products.
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