Latest news with #TheEarthPrize2025
Forbes
08-04-2025
- Science
- Forbes
Students Answer The Question 'What Can I Do About Climate Change?'
I received so many emails in response to last month's article High Schoolers Offer Hope For A Post-Climate Future that I decided to post an update on the ongoing regional awards for The Earth Prize 2025. The Earth Prize is the world's largest environmental competition and idea incubator for 13-19-year-olds, providing project participants with mentorship and funding. Like me, many readers were moved by the inventiveness and verve of these future scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs who have answered the question, 'What can I do about climate change?' This year, The Earth Foundation's panel of distinguished judges will award one prize to each of seven regional winners in Europe, North America, Africa, the Middle East, Oceania and Southeast Asia, Asia, and South and Central America. Each regional winner will receive a monetary prize and continued coaching and mentoring to help them commercialize their innovations. Once the regional winners have been announced, a global winner will be determined by an online vote. Here is the link to cast your vote. The European winner has already been announced: PURA, a two-person team that developed a household-sized wastewater purification device using a novel combination of photocatalysis and cold plasma technologies. Team PURA is comprised of Tomáš Čermák (18) from Czechia and Anna Podmanická (19) from Slovakia. Anna had been researching using photocatalysis for water purification, while Tomáš was working on a way to use cold plasma to destroy pollutants and antibiotic-resistant bacteria in agricultural and hospital wastewater streams. They decided to combine their research to develop a unique solution to water quality issues exacerbated by climate change. While photocatalysis and cold plasma solutions to water purification have been studied separately, PURA's innovative combination of these technologies is a pioneering advance. PURA has built two household-size prototypes that they hope to scale up into a new tool to fight antibiotic resistance, which the World Health Organization projects will cause 10 million deaths annually by 2050. The North American winner will be announced today (Tuesday, April 8, 2025), followed by another regional winner each day until the end of the week. Once all regional winners are announced, the public will vote for the overall winner. The regional winners are announced on this page. Just as this article was going to print, the North American winner of The Earth Prize 2025 was announced! A team from New York City took the prize for an innovative packaging solution that reduces plastic packaging waste. North America's winning team, the StuyBigCompGroup is made up of three students, Zhi Han (Anthony), Flint, and James, from Stuyvesant High School. I spoke with The Earth Foundation's founder, Peter McGarry, about the prize and was so impressed by his work that I volunteered to mentor next year's winners. McGarry felt so strongly about the need for productive action that he bootstrapped the organization himself—his enthusiasm is palpable and infectious. If you are asking what you can do about climate change, take a page from Tomáš, Anna, Zhi Han, James, and Flint's playbook and lean into building creative solutions to help our civilization and our planet. Politicians come and go; our world needs practical, durable climate tech solutions!
Euronews
07-04-2025
- Science
- Euronews
Meet the teen duo that won this year's Earth Prize Europe with their groundbreaking clean water tech
ADVERTISEMENT Two teenagers have been named as the European winners of The Earth Prize 2025 for their groundbreaking innovation that promises safer drinking water for all. 18-year-old Tomáš Čermák from Czechia and 19-year-old Anna Podmanická from Slovakia developed a unique filtration device they call PURA. They are the first from either Czechia or Slovakia to win the Earth Prize. 'I couldn't believe it,' Tomáš tells Euronews Green. 'I'm still processing that out of all those thousands of proposals, ours was picked as the best in Europe.' Since 2021, The Earth Prize has been empowering the next generation with the tools they need to make a difference. As well as funding of $100,000 (€90,600) to scale up their project, winners also receive one-to-one mentoring and learning resources. How does the winning clean drinking water innovation work? Tomáš had been working extensively with cold plasma (AC corona) to destroy pollutants and antibiotic-resistant bacteria . Anna was researching water purification through photocatalysis - using light energy to fuel a chemical reaction. By bringing these two specialisms together, they were able to create PURA. PURA uses a unique combination of plasma and light energy to remove contaminants from water. The Earth Foundation Plasma is already proven to be effective in water purification. When it interacts with water, plasma generates various small reactions that combine to break down organic pollutants and effectively inactivate bacteria, viruses and other pathogens. Photocatalysis also has potential for purification. Using light energy like sunlight, reactions are stimulated that break down harmful organic pollutants and damage the cell walls of microorganisms like bacteria. Anna and Tomáš are the first to bring these two schools of research together into one product. Their prototypes are proving effective at purifying water on a small, household scale. With the help of the Earth Prize, the team is working to develop a much larger prototype, capable of filtering more water. How polluted is Europe's drinking water? The European Environment Agency reported last year that less than 40 per cent of Europe's groundwaters are currently healthy. One in four groundwater bodies are chemically contaminated, despite providing two-thirds of Europe's drinking water. Among the pollutants are some long-lived heavy metals like mercury, as well as so-called 'forever chemicals' collectively known as PFAS, and various pharmaceuticals . While most water treatment plants are capable of filtering out heavy metals, they are ineffective at removing drugs and 'forever chemicals'. Perhaps the most worrying persistent pollutants are antibiotics. Sulfonamides, tetracyclines, and quinolones have all been detected in European drinking water. Resistant bacteria enter wastewater systems through discharge from pharmaceutical companies, healthcare facilities, and even human waste. Hospital wastewater is also a significant source of antibiotic contamination. ADVERTISEMENT In aquatic ecosystems, antibiotic residues cause the spread of antibiotic-resistant genes by selectively favouring the bacteria that survive. As they reproduce, they spread these genes to other bacteria, leading to the emergence of 'superbugs' that antibiotics struggle to tackle. Conventional wastewater treatment processes are designed to remove larger particles, pathogens, and organic matter, but they are not designed to target and remove antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance is projected to cause 10 million deaths annually by 2050, and is considered one of the most pressing challenges facing global healthcare. Related Rivers polluted with antibiotics could cause the 'next pandemic', warn scientists European rivers and lakes are chemically polluted, water security in danger Water pollution: How the EU is working to restore our rivers, lakes and seas What's next for the water purifying invention? As the European winners of the Earth Prize, Tomáš and Anna will receive $12,500 (€11,332) to scale up their idea into a larger prototype. ADVERTISEMENT 'At the moment, we're able to process milliliters and litres of water,' Tomáš explains. 'We want to get to the stage where we can handle dozens of litres.' Ultimately, the goal is to scale the technology so it can be used in wastewater treatment plants, tackling pollution at its source. The young scientists will be put forward for a chance at the global prize. The Earth Foundation While that's going to take time, the next big event for the young scientists will come later this month, when the global winners of The Earth Prize are announced. Timed to coincide with Earth Day , the big reveal will come on 22 April. 'My hopes are high,' says Tomáš of the international competition. 'I'm trying to mobilise everyone and to really communicate and explain our solution. It's not an easy concept to explain in simple terms, but I want to continue to convey the idea. ADVERTISEMENT 'I'm very hopeful. I think we can do this.' Public voting for the global winner opened yesterday, Sunday 13 April, and closes on 22 April. Cast your vote for the most innovative idea at The Earth Prize website.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
New face emerges as vocal powerhouse of global youth movement: 'As we grow, so does our impact'
Agustin Ocaña is an emerging climate leader from Ecuador who is empowering young people through his Global Youth Coalition. As Forbes reported, Ocaña leads youth in 178 countries and participates in United Nations Climate Change Conferences to share his message. Through the organization, he is working to create a world of youth-led innovation and intergenerational collaboration to address climate issues. The coalition's work involves training, campaigning, creating digital content, and representing young people at major climate negotiations. Ocaña, based in Hong Kong, launched a training program with the University of Oxford, and it has received 20,000 applicants in the past. The coalition focuses on climate, energy, and climate finance. Ocaña's coalition has sent delegates to annual United Nations conferences to ensure youth voices are heard. This year, it will send delegates to the conference via ship across the Atlantic Ocean, from Portugal to Brazil. Meanwhile, Ocaña was appointed chair of The Earth Prize 2025 Adjudicating Panel and is collaborating with Asia Pacific Tennis to further its sustainability work in youth sports. Ocaña's efforts stand out because of their widespread reach, multifaceted approach, and prominence. In addition to the work already highlighted, Ocaña is collaborating with Reforesting4Peace, an ecosystem regeneration program. The core of his coalition's mission is an initiative called the Avocado Framework, which works to hold stakeholders accountable for actions through nature-based solutions, clean energy, and youth empowerment. Since first coming together around shared sustainability goals in 2022, Ocaña's Global Youth Coalition now involves more than 12,000 young leaders. However, he says that with additional funding, they could empower many more youths. Do you worry about air pollution in and around your home? Yes — always Yes — often Yes — sometimes No — never Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. To help these and other young leaders, consider donating to climate causes. Taking local climate action requires significant passion and support from those who care about the future of our planet. You can get directly involved with the Global Youth Coalition by becoming a member or a Patreon. Since young people will inherit our steadily overheating planet, youth voices must be considered in policy changes and the promotion of sustainable practices. "We equip the next generation with the tools, knowledge, and network to lead the fight against climate change," Ocaña said to Forbes. "As we grow, so does our impact, proving that the youth are not just the leaders of tomorrow, we are leading today." Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
