UK project to reduce PFAS pollution is awarded Stockholm Junior Water Prize

Christopher Whitfeld and Wenqi (Jonathan) Zhao from United Kingdom receives the prestigious Stockholm Junior Water Prize 2024 for their work on PFAS pollution in the Thames Basin. HRH Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden presented the winner with their award during a ceremony at World Water Week in Stockholm.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) pollution is a growing concern worldwide. Focusing on the Thames Basin in the United Kingdom, where there are with no equitable solutions to the problem, Whitfeld and Zhao developed a geospatial neural network, predicting PFAS values to within 10 percent of experimentally validated values.

For this, they were announced the winners of Stockholm Junior Water Prize, an international competition where students between the ages of 15 and 20 present solutions to major water challenges.

We are very proud to have won this prize. It has been an amazing stay here is Sweden with so many new friends.

The Jury noted that Whitfield and Zhao “finds a way to take data and turn it into actionable knowledge. [They have] identified PFAS hotspots using machine learning, field tested their results, developed a cost-effective filtration system, and reached out to local governments and environmental organizations to raise awareness.”

The winner was presented with their prize during an award ceremony at World Water Week by HRH Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, the Prize’s Official Patron.

The Diploma of Excellence was awarded to Shanni Valeria Mora Fajardo and Rosa Mendoza Sosa from Mexico for their work on how to reuse inked water with homemade filtration to produce veggie gardens.

The People’s Choice Award went to Manoel José Nunes Neto from Brazil, completing the line-up of winners.

The Stockholm Junior Water Prize has been organized every year since 1997. It is hosted by Stockholm Water Foundation, with Xylem as Founding Partner.

“Innovation is paving the way to a more water-secure world, and the next generation are accelerating progress. The Stockholm Junior Water Prize competitors are an inspiring example of the ingenuity and passion young innovators bring to the table. On behalf of Xylem, I’d like to congratulate all those who took part in this year’s competition,” said Austin Alexander, Vice President of Sustainability and Social Impact at Xylem.

Stockholm Junior Water Prize is a competition for students aged 15 to 20 who have developed research projects that can help solve major water challenges. The competition attracts tens of thousands of entries from approximately 35 countries.

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UK project to reduce PFAS pollution is awarded Stockholm Junior Water Prize

BY:

Andreas Karlsson

Stockholm Junior Water Prize

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Stockholm Junior Water Prize