US students win Junior Water Prize

Two students from the US, Ryan Thorpe and Rachel Chang, received the 2017 Stockholm Junior Water Prize for their novel approach to detect and purify water contaminated with Shigella, E. coli, Salmonella and Cholera. HRH Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden presented the prize at an award ceremony during World Water Week in Stockholm. In its citation, the jury said: “This year’s winning project embodies the fundamental principle of providing safe drinking water. The winners’ motivation is to eliminate millions of human deaths each year. The project developed a unique, rapid and sensitive method to identify, quantify and control water contaminants.” The students constructed a system that detects and purifies water contaminated with Shigella, E. coli, Salmonella and Cholera more rapidly and sensitively than conventional methods. The students’ novel approach could prevent the contraction and outbreak of waterborne diseases and expand potable water throughout the world. The jury was impressed with the winners, in particular their “exceptional intelligence, enthusiasm and true passion for water and human health.”