SJWP Past International Winners

2009: Ceren Burçak Dag, Turkey

Ceren is from Nisantasi, Turkey.

"Many young people are concerned about climate change, but few will take action to identify a solution," noted the Stockholm Junior Water Prize Jury in its citation. "Reducing CO2 emissions by developing alternative environment-friendly, renewable energy sources is a specific response to this global problem. This year's winner had a spark of genius in developing a high tech solution that used PVDF, a smart material with piezoelectric properties, to transfer the kinetic energy of raindrops into electrical energy."

After the award ceremony, Ceren Bucak Dag explained her hopes for her award-winning project. "We have a new energy source from rain with a piezoelectric effect with this project," she said. "I hope that my work will contribute to the development of the next generation of energy panels where rain, sun, and wind are combined."

Diplomas of Excellence: Emily Elhacham, Israel; Mary Zhao, Canada

2008: Joyce Chai, USA

Joyce is from Palos Verdes Peninsula High School in Rolling Hills Estates, California, USA.

The official motivation of the Nominating Committee for her project "Modelling the Toxic Effects of Silver Nanoparticles under Varying Environmental Conditions" is:

"The project from the USA entitled 'Modelling the Toxic Effects of Silver Nanoparticles under Varying Environmental Conditions' is the winner of the 2008 Stockholm Junior Water Prize for discovering the potential toxicity of silver nanoparticles. This is a new, hardly investigated category of micropollutants, which are commonly used in industry for a variety of purposes. These particles are then released into the environment, including water bodies, without proper knowledge of their fate and potential toxicity. The remarkable level of scientific research takes steps towards understanding and quantifying the potential environmental consequences and risks of their use. This study repudiates the assertion that silver nanoparticles are more reliable and less environmentally hazardous than silver ions. This initial research questions the reliability of their use in consumer products. The scientific impact of this investigation is extremely profound, and we expect that it will open the door to serious questioning and further studies regarding the widespread use of silver nanoparticles."

Diplomas of Excellence: Alexey Shinkarev, Russia; R. D. Dasun Thakshala siriwardana, Sandun Gayath Sameera Dissanayaka, and A. Sujith Madushan Silva, Sri Lanka

2007: Adriana Alcántara Ruiz, Dalia Graciela Díaz Gómez and Carlos Hernández Mejía, Mexico

Adriana, Dalia and Carlos from the Cultural Institute of Paideia in Toluca, Mexico, were recognised for a project that, according to the international nominating commit-tee, "developed a novel approach to adsorb lead in industrial wastewater."

Their project used eggshells, an abundant and inexpensive bio-residual, for its capacity in the adsorption of pollution in wastewater. First, the students mixed eggshells with an aqueous solution of lead to remove the pollutant from the liquid phase. Next, the morphology and elemental com-position of this compound was determined through a three step process of using atomic force microscopy, electron scanning microscopy, and energy dispersive x-ray analysis. The project resulted in a simple, innovative, effective and economically viable method of wastewater treatment.

In their official motivation, the committee praised the project's creativity and its immediate applicability to industrial water management. "By mixing ground-up eggshells in a liquid lead solution, the young Mexicans successfully removed more than 90 percent of lead pollutants from liquid waste. This low-cost, time-efficient method provides an alternative solution for removing heavy metals, a pollutant and health hazard around the world, from water. The quick and effective process can be applied in both small-scale industries large industrial operations."

Diploma of Excellence: Yang Guo, Junhong Wu and Sisi Yu, China

2006: Wang Hao, Xiao Yi and Weng Jie, China

The Chinese trio Wang Hao, Xiao Yi and Weng Jie from Shanghai Nanyang Model High School were awarded the prize for a project which "displayed originality, ingenuity and tenacity in its use of low-cost, ecologically friendly technology to restore a polluted urban river channel," according to the international nominating committee.

Their project consisted of the students damming small sections of the highly polluted Caoxi river channel and removing the contaminated mud which was exposed. Second, oxygen-starved stretches of the river were revitalised through the use of floating aerators. Third, bushes and other bank-side plants were carefully fertilised with organic waste, irrigated and used as biological barriers to block polluted runoff from the land. Finally, through a water quality monitoring program, illicit sewage discharges were discovered, exposed and eliminated.

The committee called the project a "tried-and-true method for river channel restoration which gives great hope for similar successes with other streams in the 19-million person Shanghai metropolitan area."

Diploma of Excellence: Satomi Kosho, Naomi Sugimoto and Sae Nishino, Japan

2005: Pontso Moletsane, Motebele Moshodi and Sechaba Ramabenyane, South Africa

Pontso, Motebele and Sechaba of South Africa were awarded the prize for developing a revolutionary system to cut water usage in small-scale irrigation. For the students, the moment the received the prize was even more memorable because the audience included among others the South African Water Minister, Ms. Buyelwa Sonjica, who said afterwards, "This is one example of triumph over adversity, where children who are from a disadvantaged background, are even able to overcome all constraints related to their humble social backgrounds, to achieve the best results. This proves beyond reasonable doubt that any child given an opportunity could rise to any challenge."

The Nominating Committee, in its official motivation, wrote: "The South African team proposed a revolutionary solution to minimise the need for water in small-scale irrigation. They developed a low-current electric soil humidity sensor which uses light detection to control water pipe valves and improve irrigation effi ciency. By automating irrigation so that it occurs mainly at night, less water is lost to evaporation. Their invention, called the 'Nocturnal Hydro Minimiser,' is technically simple and inexpensive to produce. It enables communities to use the limited water resource more efficiently, to improve food production and to contribute to eradication of poverty."

Diplomas of Excellence: Ricardo Martín Robledo and Antonio de la Cruz Cáceres, Argentina; Itzel García Silvia and Liliana Vargas Meneses, Mexico; and Marc Campeny Crego and Marc Oliva Bernal, Spain

2004: Tsutomu Kawahira, Daisuke Sunakawa and Kaori Yamaguti, Japan

When three high school students at Japan's Okinawa Prefectual Miyako Agriculture and Forestry High School started a water-related research project, their goal was to find a way to recover and protect groundwater which has been made nearly unusable because of chemical fertiliser used to grow sugarcane.

Little did Tsutomu Kawahira, Daisuke Sunakawa and Kaori Yamaguti know that they would then win the prestigious Stockholm Junior Water Prize in a formal ceremony during the World Water Week in Stockholm. Tsutomu, Daisuke and Kaori developed an environmentally friendly, organic fertiliser as an alternative to commercial fertilisers. Combined with proper management, the organic fertiliser not only gives Miyako island's farmers the ability to reduce the nitrate contamination, it even recycles phosphorus accumulated in the soils. An Honourable Mention was given to Ron Neuman from Israel for his "development of an innovative microbial sensor based on engineered bacteria to monitor toxic chemicals in water."

Diplomas of Excellence: Ron Neuman, Israel

2003 Claire Reid, South Africa

Claire Reid from South Africa received the prize for project that developed a so-called "Water Wise Reel Gardening" system to help farmers to be more efficient in their use of water in growing crops. Her simple and effective seedplanting system where seeds are attached to newspaper strips, cuts down water usage by reducing water leakage into the soil. The paper strips keep seeds moist, so that they can germinate without wasting water.

"I was filled with confidence in Claire, and her project is very impressive," said the South African Minister for Water Affairs Mr. Ronnie Kasrils. "This is a big step forward for the implementation of water conservation in order to ensure efficient and sustainable water supply in South Africa."

The SJWP Nominating Committee, in its official motivation, honoured the young South African "for an innovative, practical, easily applicable technique for planting and successfully germinating seeds in water-scarce areas to improve rural and peri-urban livelihoods."

2002: Katherine Holt, USA

Katherine Holt, who is known affectionately as "The Oyster Lady," was awarded the prize for her project "Cleaning the Chesapeake Bay with Oysters." Katherine's project, which won the national level competition in the U.S. earlier this year, included scientific and business analysis of introducing Asian oysters to clean the water of the Chesapeake Bay near her home in Virginia. Katherine's research looked at how foreign species could be introduced to benefit the Chesapeake while preserving the Bay's native oyster species and meeting national environmental goals. The issue of introducing foreign oysters in the Chesapeake is the subject of current debate.

"Katherine has impressively presented a good example of how the introduction of an alien species can actually do good for an environment. I am proud of the role young people play with regard to today's water environment problems," said Mr. Björn von Euler, Director for Corporate Communications, ITT Industries, the Global Sponsor of the Prize.

2001: Magnus Isacson, Johan Nilvebrant and Rasmus Öman, Sweden

Magnus Isacson, Johan Nilvebrant and Rasmus Öman from Bromma High School won the prize for their project "Removal of Metal Ions from Leachate," which according to the international jury was "an innovative and relevant research project" that examined the problem of leachate runoff from landfills.

Johan, Magnus and Rasmus made ionexchangers out of natural and renewable materials like wood, bark and ligin, which can capture metal ions and which are readily available by-products from Sweden's forest and pulp and paper industry. They showed conclusively that these natural materials can be used as natural ionexchangers because they effectively captured metal ions in solution. Additionally, because they are by-products, their value as solid fuels would not be lost, since they could be dried and burned after their use as ion-exchangers.

The young Swedes have proposed further studies to establish whether such methods could be used in practice, particularly in comparison to currently available methods of leachate purification. "Magnus, Johan and Rasmus have conducted research that shows with clarity that young people play an important roll when it concerns today's water environment problems," said Mr. Björn von Euler, director for corporate communications, ITT Industries, Inc. the global sponsor of the Prize.

2000: Ashley Mulroy, USA

Ashley Mulroy, a high school student from the USA, received the prize for her project, "Correlating Residual Antibiotic Contamination in Public Water to the Drug Resistance of Escherichia coli." The project was cited by the Stockholm Junior Water Prize international nominating committee as "an outstanding contribution to the contemporary science of drinking water quality and microbial drug resistance."

In her study, Ms. Mulroy found the presence of three antibiotics, Penicillin, Tetracycline and Vancomycin, in trace levels in five Ohio River sites, two tributary sites and in drinking water in three municipalities adjacent to the river. She determined that filtration of the drug-contaminated water through activated charcoal removed most of the antibiotics, but filtration through sand, the most common wastewater filtration method used, did not remove any of the three antibiotics from water samples. She also found that E. coli, for example, demonstrated resistance to the antibiotics with which it formerly coexisted in nature.

The young American's study calls for judicious distribution and use of existing, as well as new, pharmacology. She also pointed out that the failure to do so could perpetuate the condition in which pervasive, lowlevel antibiotic contamination would provide just the right environment in which the world's microbes actively train to outpace new antimicrobial drug development.

1999: Rosa Lozano, Elisabeth Pozo and Rocío Ruiz, Spain

Rosa Lozano Durán, Elisabeth Pozo Camacho, and Rocío Ruiz Arias of Spain won for their project, "Echinoderms as Biological Indicators of Water Quality in the Alborán Sea Coast." The Spanish students used sea urchins, starfish, and sea cucumbers to help determine how effective a European Union (EU) beach program was in protecting plant and animal life on Spain's Alborán Coast in the Western Mediterranean Sea. By evaluating different beach strips and using the echinoderms as an indicator of bacterial pollution, the students accurately identified which beach environments are truly protected, and which require further protective measures. In particular, they focused on coastal areas and beaches receiving the "European Blue Flag," given to areas that meet environmental and aesthetic criteria. The young Spaniards observed many of these beaches have high levels of bacterial pollution, thus placing plant and animal life at risk. They proposed amending European Blue Flags with echinoderm logos that further indicate ecosystem health.

"Rosa, Elisabeth, and Rocío have conducted an innovative project with direct and relevant implications for society," says Dr. Johan Rockström, the chairman of the international nominating committee.

1998: Robert Franke, Germany

Robert Franke from Beethoven Gymnasium in Berlin, Germany, won the Stockholm Junior Water Prize for his design of the Aquakat, a solar-driven reactor for the decontamination of industrial wastewater.

Franke's invention, the Aquakat, uses the photocatalytic properties of semiconductors to degrade persistent chemicals. His device is claimed to be cost-efficient, environmentally sustainable and of particular relevance wherever solar power could be used as an energy source. Mr. Thomas R. Martin, vice president and director of corporate relations for ITT Industries, the global sponsor of the Prize, said: "Robert's project represents the highest objectives of the Stockholm Junior Water Prize. Young inventors like Robert will help lead tomorrow's engineers as they find solutions to the many challenges we face in protecting the earth's water."

1997: Stephen Tinnin, USA

Stephen Tinnin won the first international Stockholm Junior Water Prize for his project, "Changes in development, sperm activity and reproduction across a 105 exposure range in lytechinus variegatus Gametes Exposed to Pesticides in Marine Media." The project investigated the correlation between the reproductive rate of sea urchins and water pollution.