Indian Youths among recipients of International Young Eco-Hero Award 2023
Five youths from India are among the 17 teen environmental activists from across the globe who will receive the 2023 International Young Eco-Hero Award presented by US-based non-profit organisation, “Action For Nature”.
Every year, youth from countries around the globe send in their applications and explain their work. Then a panel of judges including experts in environmental science, biology and education determines the year’s top achievers.
The winners of the Award are selected by a panel of independent judges, including experts in environmental science, biology, and education. For the past 20 years, US-based environmental organization, “Action For Nature” has recognised 339 Eco-Heroes from 27 countries and 32 US states.
The winners will present their work at a virtual event anchored in San Francisco on August 26 via Zoom Webinar.
Eiha Dixit from Meerut, Manya Harsha from Bengaluru, Nirvaan Somani and Mannat Kaur from New Delhi and Karnav Rastogi from Mumbai are the youths from India shortlisted for the award. Another four Indian-American youths (PIOs) are also shortlisted, including Satvika Iyer from California, Rahul Vijayan and Anushka Godambe from Texas and Nitya Jakka from Illinois.
The award recognises young heroes between ages 8 to 16 for raising awareness of environmental issues and finding innovative solutions to world’s most pressing environmental challenges.
Nine-year-old Eiha Dixit is a young eco-hero who won the first prize, has been growing saplings to protect the environment since the age of four. Along with a group of volunteers, she has planted over 20,000 saplings, creating mini forests, parks, and green belts in Meerut, and has also established a plant bank at her home, using plants donated by people who can no longer care for them.
Manya Harsha, 12, from Bengaluru engages in activities such as walkathons, planting saplings, distributing seed balls, and organising clean-up drives. With over 5,000 sustainable bags distributed, 3,500 saplings planted, and 3,000 seed bombs thrown, she continues to work tirelessly to create a better future for the coming generations, according to the award citation.
Nirvaan Somani, 16, repurposes used jeans into washable and insulating sleeping bags for the homeless, reducing landfill waste and providing better protection from harsh weather conditions. He has so far collected 6000 pairs of jeans and has distributed 800 sleeping bags to date.
Young Eco-Hero Mannat Kaur, 15, from New Delhi has designed a system to collect, filter, and reuse greywater from households for non-potable purposes.
Karnav Rastogi, 13, from Mumbai has written two books, “Kartik, Daddy & Plastic: A journey about beating plastic pollution” and “Kartik, Mixie & Monster: A journey about ocean pollution”, to educate young people about the impact of plastic pollution and climate change.
Action For Nature, Inc. is an international non-profit organization based in San Francisco, California, that encourages young people around the world to carry out individual environmental action projects and to foster love and respect for nature.
The organization believe Personal action is a powerful weapon in the battle to keep our planet alive and well. When taken, it can slow down a river’s pollution; help preserve the ancient growth of trees threatened by cutters; and increase the survival of songbirds.
