Press release -
Two Indian sustainability projects win the Children's Climate Prize 2020
The winners of this year's Children's Climate Prize are Vinisha Umashankar, 14 years old, and Aadya Joshi, 17 years old, both from India. Vinisha wins the Clean Air prize for her initiative with solar-powered ironing carts and Aadya wins the Changemaker prize for her biodiversity project The Right Green. They each receive a diploma, medal, and SEK 100,000 from the Children's Climate Foundation to develop their projects.
This year, a record number of nominations from around the world were received for the fifth edition of the Children's Climate Prize – one of the world's largest international climate prizes for young innovators. The jury, headed by Johan Kuylenstierna, has therefore had the difficult task of selecting finalists and winners from the many creative and innovative contributions. This year, seven entries made it to the finals and the winners in the two prize categories, Clean Air and Changemaker, are presented here.
"Here we have young people seeing a problem and finding a solution! Thanks to their impressive knowledge and creativity to find sustainable solutions for people and the planet, they address both climate change and how to change life for the better for thousands of people. It's incredibly inspiring!" says Johan Kuylenstierna.
A special report from the winners and their projects will be presented at this year's Children's Climate Prize, which this year is a digital event broadcast on www.ccprize.org on November 18 at 10 am and 7 pm CET.
Clean Air Prize
Solar Ironing Cart - The making of a sustainable ironing cart
Vinisha Umashankar, 14, INDIA
There are about 10 million ironing carts in use in the streets of India. Together they use about 50 million kg of charcoal every day, consuming enormous amounts of wood, polluting the air and contributing to climate change. Vinisha recognized the need for a sustainable solution to the problem and created a solar powered ironing cart, an innovation that proves safer, healthier and more sustainable.
Jury motivation:
With a smart design and a strong understanding of the problem of charcoal as an air pollutant, Vinisha has managed to combine science, innovation and technology to design and create the Solar powered ironing cart. If implemented on a large scale, this is an invention that can have a significant positive impact on India's air quality and people's health, while reducing unsustainable use of wood. The jury is impressed and sees a young scientist and entrepreneur with a strong passion for clean air that can bring multiple benefits to both society and the environment.
Changemaker Prize
The Right Green - Know how about biodiversity restoration
Aadya Joshi, 17, INDIA
Deforestation is the second-leading cause of climate change. But just randomly planting new trees can sometimes do more harm than good by reducing biodiversity. Therefore, Aadya Joshi founded The Right Green and developed a database including over 15000 plant-insect feeding relationships from different eco-regions of India. Using her newly invented BioPower Index, landscapers, gardeners and civic authorities can plant the best biodiversity supporting plants. Her educational and outreach workshops have empowered and enabled communities to restore healthy ecosystems, rich in biodiversity, while also addressing climate change.
Jury motivation:
Through her great understanding of the dangers of biodiversity loss and deep knowledge of the roles of plants and trees' ability to prevent it, Aadya has through her initiative ‘The Right Green’ combined modern database technology with the traditional knowledge of native plants to empower local communities to take action. The fact that Aadya attaches particular importance to the dissemination of knowledge about plants is impressive and was an important factor in the jury's decision. With the right support, the initiative has great potential to be scaled-up in India and even globally, and it serves as an excellent example how the combination of traditional knowledge and modern technology through bottom-up action can contribute to address major environmental challenges.
The Children’s Climate Prize is an international prize annually awarded to children who have made extraordinary efforts for the climate and environment. The winners of the prize are celebrated at a gala event in November in Stockholm, Sweden. They receive a diploma, medal and prize money of SEK 100,000 to continue developing their projects. The prize is founded by Telge Energi, the Swedish frontrunner in renewable energy, and it is they, in partnership with Blueair, a world-leader in air purification, that are behind the award.
