Action For Nature Announces 2023 International Young Eco-Hero Award Winners

Today, Action For Nature (AFN) announced its 2023 International Young Eco-Hero Award winners, honoring young environmental activists from across the globe for their creative initiatives to tackle the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.

The International Young Eco-Hero Awards honors global youth ages 8 to 16 whose work has had a significant impact on raising awareness of environmental issues and finding innovative solutions to tough environmental problems.

“From bustling metropolises to remote villages, these young luminaries are sparking a green revolution that knows no bounds,” said Beryl Kay, president of Action for Nature.

Since 2023, Action For Nature has recognized 339 Eco-Heroes from 27 countries and 32 U.S. states. The winning projects are selected by a panel of judges, including experts in environmental science, biology, and education.

This year’s International Young Eco-Hero Awards go to:

First Place (8-12 Year-old Category): Eiha Dixit – Age 9 – Meirut, India
Eiha has planted over 20,000 saplings, creating mini forests, parks, and green belts in her Indian city, providing shade and cleaner air.

First Place (13-16 Year-old Category): Charlotte Michaluk – Age 16 – Titusville, New Jersey
Charlotte designed a special coating for ship hulls that makes ships more efficient by reducing resistance and the growth of harmful organisms on the ship’s surface.

Second Place (8-12 Year-old Category): Manya Harsha – Age 12 – Bangalore, India
Through her books, blog, and YouTube channel, The Little Environmentalist, Manya inspires youth to take environmental action.

Second Place (13-16 Year-old Category): Michelle Song – Age 15 – Greenville, North Carolina
Michelle started Community for Environmental Sustainability to address food insecurity and environmental issues in her community and has donated over 4,500 pounds of fresh produce to those in need.

Second Place (13-16 Year-old Category): Nirvaan Somani – Age 16 – New Delhi, India
Nirvaan founded Project Jeans, which repurposes used jeans into sleeping bags for the homeless.

Second Place (13-16 Year-old Category): Kaitlyn Culbert – Age 16 – Toms River, New Jersey
Kaitlyn started Honey Bee & Pollinator Health: Scientific Innovation and Outreach to combat the Varroa mite, a major threat to honey bees, by using a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly solution involving mist diffusion of essential oils.

Third Place (13-16 Year-old Category): Ethan Hua – Age 14 – San Mateo, California
Ethan launched the H.O.P.E. Uniforms Program which collects gently-used school uniforms and redistributes them to students in need, creating an eco-friendly cycle and reducing landfill waste.

Third Place (13-16 Year-old Category): Satvika Iyer – Age 15 – Milpitas, California
Satvika’s project creates a healthy and sustainable food system in schools by advocating for more plant-based nutrition and better waste management.

Third Place (13-16 Year-old Category): Mannat Kaur – Age 15 – New Delhi, India
Mannat has designed a system to collect, filter, and reuse greywater from households for non-potable purposes, thus conserving precious drinking water.

Third Place (13-16 Year-old Category): Colin Chu – Age 15 – Palo Alto, California
Colin’s project, Homeless Heroes, delivers thousands of meals that would have otherwise gone to waste to homeless shelters.

To learn more about the Young Eco-Hero Awards and this year’s winners, visit https://actionfornature.org/eco-hero-awards/2023-winners.

About Action For Nature

Action For Nature (AFN) is an international non-profit organization based in San Francisco, California, that encourages young people to nurture a love and respect for Earth’s natural resources and encourages youth to take personal action to protect the environment.