SAN FRANCISCO, June 19, 2013 – From the US to the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom to Indonesia, environmental activism
is getting a boost from kid power.Action for Nature (AFN) today named 14 extraordinary winners of its 2013
International Young Eco-Hero Awards competition. The organization recognized
these inspirational youth from around the globe because they are helping to
create a better future for our planet by taking actions to address tough
environmental problems. Achievements of this year’s winners ranged from reducing
plastic pollution to preserving wildlife habitats.
Malcolm
Barnard, 16, of Georgia,
won the first place award in the 12-16 age group, for organizing his community
to protect its wildlife habitat. Using a three-pronged approach of “education,
conservation, and continuation”, Malcolm led the city of JohnsCreek, Georgia
to become the sixtieth community in the USA to be certified by the National
Wildlife Federation (NWF) as a Community Wildlife Habitat.
Milo Cress,
12, of Longmont, Colorado, won the first place award in the
8-12 age group, for his campaign to address needless plastic waste in our
landfills and oceans. Through research, he discovered that in the USA,
approximately 500 million straws are used and discarded daily, enough to fill
more than 127 school buses. To address this issue, Milo
founded Be Straw Free (BSF), a non-profit organization whose goal is to make
disposable drinking straws distributed only upon request, and his project was
recognized by the National Restaurant Association as an industry “best
practice.”
Second-place
honors went to Christina and Eric Bear, ages 12 and 14, of Colorado for their
research and activism concerning the impact of radon on human health; Abbie
Barnes, age 16, of the United Kingdom who advocates against the use of palm oil
in products; Kila Nurtjahya, age 15, of Indonesia, who researches and takes
action to foster the honey bee industry in an area devastated by tin mining;
and to Kehkashan Basu, age 12, of United Arab Emirates, for her efforts to
combat land degradation through tree planting and addressing climate change.
Third-place
winners included Brianna Moore, age 16 of Michigan, for
her campaigns for recycling and cleanups; Benjamin Shrader, age 14 of Texas,
who campaigns against invasive species and educates others; David Lewis, age 15
of Virginia, who grows oysters and researches oyster farming techniques; and
Rajashree Choudhury, age 11 of India, who spread environmental awareness and
led efforts to reduce electrical energy consumption at her school.
Other top
honors from the competition include Honorable Mention awards for Salil
Tripathy, age 15 of India, who promotes environmentalism and planting trees;
Miruthula Jegadesan, age 16 of Arizona, who campaigns for clean water sources
for people in India; Carolyn Jess, age 11 of Texas, for promoting endangered ocelot awareness; and Harnoor Gill, age 15 of Canada, for his outreach and
organization of volunteers for environmental activities.
“Our 2013
Eco-Heroes represent the future generation of environmental leaders,” said
Beryl Kay, president, Action for Nature. “Regardless of where they come from
and how old they are, these young people feel a sense of urgency in protecting
the environment. They are making a difference through personal action and their
ability to inspire others. Their successes benefit our planet and people
everywhere.”
About Action for Nature
Every year
since 2003, Action For Nature (AFN), a U.S.-based non-profit, has sought to
recognize and reward young people ages 8-16 who are taking action to solve the
world’s tough environmental problems. Youth from countries around the globe
send in their stories and explain their work, then a panel of judges including
experts in environmental science, biology and education determines the year’s
top achievers. Each Eco-Hero Award winner receives a cash prize, a certificate
of achievement and other benefits.