Karina Samuel: Indian-American activist helping bid adieu to plastic bags
Compiled by: Team GI Youth
(August 6, 2023) While many countries are feeling the heat from climate change, Florida in the US has irreversibly changed by the climate emergency, which has affected coral reefs, led to higher property values and increasing inequality for vulnerable populations in the state. The chronic coastal flooding and increased storms due to global warming left the 17-year-old Indian American activist Karina Samuel appalled, who then decided to launch the Florida chapter of Bye Bye Plastic Bags in 2019.
Solution for plastic menace
Bye Bye Plastic Bags is a youth-led, global organisation on a mission to reduce the amount of plastic on the planet. The initiative, which has so far mobilised more than 1000 volunteers to join over 175 coastal cleanups across the state, led Karina to win the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes for making a positive difference in the people’s lives, their communities, and the environment. “I’ve always been invested in climate justice, and living in Florida, I’ve seen the effects of inequalities and how they disproportionately affect poorer communities,” she told Point of Light.
The Indian American teen activist, who is pursuing her Bachelor of Science from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is working with her team of volunteers across Miami, Tampa and Key West to make the Florida coast healthier. “I’ve been serving as the president of the Florida chapter of Bye Bye Plastic Bags, which is an international non-profit. It’s actually based in Bali, [Indonesia], but they have chapters all over the world. So, I founded my chapter in 2019 and I’ve been doing all sorts of different environmental projects,” she told Sun Sentinel.
Impact
In the last three years, they have raised several thousand dollars to donate to different environmental organisations. Moreover, they have been focused on passing pro-environment policy reforms, banning plastic bags, organising coastal cleanups and educating the community about climate change. “We’ve done lobbying with certain candidates for the 2020 election in support of the Green New Deal, educational webinars at different schools and campuses across the state and, of course, cleanups all over the state of Florida,” the Global Indian added.
Karina Samuel is an Indian American teen activist.
The cleanups are a constant reminder that the activist needs to continue marching forward with her volunteers. “Every time we go out for clean-ups, we see the trash and negative impact people make when they are careless. We always see plastic water bottles during the cleanups. Also, soda cans and plastic wrapping from food containers and take out,” she told Point of Light.
Why giving back is important
Karina, who has been championing the cause of climate change, believes that it’s important to give back to the society, and knows that the power to make the change lies with youngsters like her. “I’m not the person who will feel the majority of the negative implications from climate change, and that’s why climate justice is so important. It disproportionately affects poorer communities, people who can’t go out and volunteer for change. Those who are capable of volunteering have the responsibility to go out and address these different community problems,” she added.
Moreover, she is the vice president of Beyond Resolved, a national student-run non-profit that aims to increase diversity and inclusivity in the high school speech and debate community. Her efforts have been recognised by the Points of Light Network, Children’s Environmental Health Network and the Earth Island Institute.
Karina, who is changing her community, one plastic bag at a time, loves to play volleyball and tennis. For someone who has been volunteering for years now, she finds “satisfaction” through her work. “It’s a very satisfying feeling to know we worked together to accomplish a goal and that it went well.”
(June 10, 2023) The global epidemic of drug consumption continues to cast a dark shadow, infiltrating societies across continents and leaving devastating consequences in its wake. What’s worse is it impacts the most vulnerable and stigmatised populations. In fact, according to he Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), between January 2021 and June 2021, about 1,150 youngsters aged 14 to 18 died from drug overdose in the US, and about 47 percent of adolescents started consuming illicit drugs upon graduation from high school. Trying to devise a solution for this pervasive crisis, is a young economist, Dhruv Gaur, who is delving deep into the study of drug use, homelessness, housing insecurity, poverty, and inequality through the lens of economic and epidemiological inference. The recent recipient of the prestigious Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans, Dhruv is working with various communities to raise awareness about the growing overdose epidemic and advocate for overdose prevention policy. An ambitious, pre-doctoral research fellow at Harvard University, the young economist is currently chasing the causes of inequalities in health and higher education in the USA. "I actively engage in studying the US overdose crisis, lending my expertise to the critical work of
"I actively engage in studying the US overdose crisis, lending my expertise to the critical work of generating research and shaping policies aimed at safeguarding individuals who use drugs from the perils of overdose and other drug-related harms," shares Dhruv, as he connects with Global Indian for an interview, adding, "I also play a crucial role in the maintenance and management of PreventOverdoseRI.org, a dedicated website specifically designed to combat the overdose crisis. I am determined to contribute to the collective mission of putting an end to the devastating impact of drug overdose in our community."
A curious cat
Even though Dhruv was born in the USA, the youngster shares that his family ensured that he grew up knowing and learning about his roots. "Both my parents are doctors, and they came over to the United States of America after finishing med school in India. I was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where my parents were completing their medical training. We later shifted to a town in Northeast Georgia," says the young economist, adding, "I grew up around a very tight-knit and supportive Indian community. My parents were quite keen on instilling Indian values in me and my brother, so over weekends, they would drive us to Balvihar, which is a Hindi school."
[caption id="attachment_30931" align="aligncenter" width="637"] Dhruv with his family[/caption]
As brilliant as he was, the economist shares that he was also quite a curious child, who not only loved to learn new things but also to pass on the knowledge. "I loved to read, just about anything that I could get my hands on," he shares, adding, "During my high school years, I had the incredible opportunity to volunteer at Balvihar as a teaching assistant. Little did I know that this experience would ignite within me a deep passion for teaching and mentoring. It was during those moments spent guiding and supporting others that I realised my aspirations to pursue a career as a professor. The impact of that experience has remained with me, shaping my path and fueling my dedication to education and the profound influence it can have on shaping lives."
A true changemaker
After finishing school, the youngster enrolled at Brown University to study economics and public health policy. Driven by the devastating overdose crisis plaguing his hometown, Dhruv became a part of the People, Place, and Health Collective, contributing as an undergraduate researcher. He actively published academic articles that shed light on crucial aspects of the crisis, providing valuable insights for policymakers and stakeholders.
The economist also played a pivotal role in maintaining real-time data resources, serving as a foundation for Rhode Island's informed and evidence-based response to the overdose crisis. Through his dedication and contributions, Dhruv has become an instrumental force in the ongoing efforts to combat the overdose epidemic and promote effective policy interventions.
"I held the role of an outreach team leader and finance chair for Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere (HOPE), an organisation driven by students that focuses on direct service and advocacy for homelessness. With HOPE, I led a dedicated night-time homeless outreach team every week, striving to address the immediate needs of individuals experiencing street homelessness and ensuring they are connected to essential resources. I also engaged in advocating for housing policies at both the city and state level in Rhode Island, aiming to effect positive change and promote equitable access to safe and stable housing for all," the economist shares.
The power of giving
But Dhruv's journey hasn't been all about books. In 2018, the economist made his mark on the television show Jeopardy! College Championship trivia tournament, emerging as the victorious contestant and securing a substantial prize of $100,000.
Wait, that's not all... The following year, he returned to the Jeopardy! stage, capturing the attention of the entire USA for a profoundly heartfelt reason. Answering host Alex Trebek's Final Jeopardy question, Dhruv put his heart on his screen, writing, “We (heart) you Alex!”, showing his support for the host who was battling stage 4 pancreatic cancer. The gesture moved Alex to tears, and he could only manage to say, "That’s very kind of you."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BNH7UTaL-M
Seizing the opportunity to make a difference, Dhruv utilised the platform and the immense public interest to launch a national fundraising campaign dedicated to pancreatic cancer research and successfully raised over $100,000, leaving an indelible impact on both the fight against pancreatic cancer and the power of compassionate unity. "While I was at the show, Alex took a moment to visit the contestants in the green room. It was quite evident that he wasn't doing so well," shares the youngster, adding, "Later, when I stepped onto the stage, fully aware that winning the game was an unlikely outcome, I thought I could use this opportunity to support someone in need."
Interestingly, the economist grabbed the attention of well-known American television host, Ellen Lee DeGeneres, who called him to be on her show a few days later. Impressed by his efforts, Ellen too donated $25,000 toward pancreatic cancer research.
Miles to go
Currently, Dhruv working as a pre-doctoral research fellow alongside esteemed economists Raj Chetty, John Friedman, and Nathaniel Hendren at Harvard University. The young economist is focused on studying the profound inequalities that exist within the realms of health and higher education. Driven by an unwavering commitment to understanding the root causes and far-reaching consequences of severe marginalization, such as drug overdose, homelessness, and poverty, Dhruv aspires to pursue a doctoral degree in economics.
"Through my research pursuits, I strive to unearth valuable insights that have the potential to shape transformative policies, uplifting individuals from these challenging circumstances and fostering a society that is both equitable and inclusive. I aim to contribute to the collective effort of building a brighter and more just future for all," he expresses.
(November 19, 2022) In 2018, then 13-year-old Adarsh Ambati's life came temporarily to a standstill when his mum suffered a third-degree heart block. Adarsh recalls seeing her connected to wires that were meant to monitor health but didn't allow her to move around. So, Adarsh Ambati, now the founder of the Green Initiatives Movement, decided to develop a portable, cost-effective device that could monitor vital signs without hampering mobility. Nine months later, the prototype for the vital signs monitor was ready. By the time he won the prestigious Gloria Barron Prize in 2021, Adarsh had also devised the Community Sprinkler and started an Amphibian Biodiversity Protection Initiative. [caption id="attachment_24431" align="aligncenter" width="545"] Adarsh Ambati[/caption] The Contactless Monitor Now a freshman at Stanford University, Adarsh's first project, the Contactless Monitor, was ready nine months after his mother's illness. Fortunately, her mobility had been restored, so Adarsh ran over 1000 tests on his protype, as part of a 40-participant pilot study. "It took me around nine months to develop the device and build an app with notifications so doctors could use it, but also regular people," he told The Guardian. "Because it's contactless and relatively portable, it could even be used to detect
onitor, was ready nine months after his mother's illness. Fortunately, her mobility had been restored, so Adarsh ran over 1000 tests on his protype, as part of a 40-participant pilot study. "It took me around nine months to develop the device and build an app with notifications so doctors could use it, but also regular people," he told The Guardian. "Because it's contactless and relatively portable, it could even be used to detect infectious diseases like Covid-19."
Even as a teenager, the young Global Indian was especially perceptive of the world around him, alive to its problems and eager to find solutions, which he does using his deep interest in technology and coding. Growing up in California, he noticed his neighbours using automatic sprinklers, using vast amounts of precious water on landscaping.
A low-cost community sprinkler alert system
"While going to school in the rain one day, I saw one of my neighbours with their sprinklers on, creating run-offs," he told Vintage Billboard. "Through research, I found that 25 percent of the water used in an average American household is wasted each day due to overwatering and inefficient watering methods."
In 2016, Adarsh began work on a prototype for a smart, low-cost, community sprinkler alert system. When he conducted a two-month pilot with 10 neighbouring homes, he found they had the potential to save some 50,000 gallons of water in a couple of months. "The sprinkler system is compliant with water regulations, to cost-effectively save water for entire neighbourhoods using a Raspberry Pi, moisture sensors, PyOWM (weather database) and by utilising free social media networks like Twitter," he added.
The idea was to save the excess water that is wasted during general-purpose irrigation. The device can detect and integrate real-time weather forecast data to provide the optimum levels of water. It doesn't stop there. The sprinkler alert system is also connected to social media and can publish information on when to turn on sprinklers and for how long.
The prototype cost about $50, which, incidentally, is less expensive than the higher-end smart sprinklers. By Adarsh's estimate, it can be brought down to about five cents or less per household, since the device can serve an entire community.
A scalable model
Some 83 percent of water used in outdoor landscaping can be saved, a huge deal in Northern California, 100 gallons of water is used for outdoor landscaping everyday, in an average household. The sprinkler alert system was also presented to the San Jose City Council, who even considered installing the system in their public grass areas.
Recognition found Adarsh in 2019, when he won MagPi Magazine's Coolest Projects USA competition. Phil Colligan, the CEO of Raspberry Pi, also expressed his support. In 2021, he received the prestigious Gloria Barron Prize. Adarsh is also the founder of Gro-STEMS, which sells succulents to support technology training at San Jose's LifeMoves Homeless Shelter and Aarti Girls School for abandoned children in Kadapa, India.
(April 29, 2022) In April 2011, anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare began his famous hunger strike at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi. The movement spread and a series of protests erupted across the country, with Time magazine naming it one of the Top 10 News Stories of 2011. Shivam Shankar Singh, who was setting off to the University of Michigan at the time, found the protests evoked a sense of urgency in him. So, when Prashant Kishor founded Citizens for Accountable Governance in 2013, data analyst Shivam dove headlong into a political career. Today, at the age of 29, he is not just a political consultant of repute, he is also the author of two books - How to Win an Indian Election (2019) and The Art of Conjuring Alternate Realities, which hit bookstores in 2021. In July, he will head off to Tsinghua University in Beijing's Forbidden City, as a Schwarzman Scholar for 2022. Deep dive into politics In 2013, Prashant Kishor launched the Citizens for Accountable Governance (CAG, later IPAC), a "turning point in Indian politics", says Shivam, adding, "For the first time, there was room for professionals in the political space. Until that point, joining politics meant working your
countable Governance (CAG, later IPAC), a "turning point in Indian politics", says Shivam, adding, "For the first time, there was room for professionals in the political space. Until that point, joining politics meant working your way up as a karyakarta." He seized the opportunity, volunteering with CAG's projects even though he was in the US at the time.
When he returned in 2015, his LAMP fellowship sent him right back into the heart of Delhi politics. "I knew I wanted to be in politics and the policy space, and it seemed like the best opportunity," he says. One of the most prestigious fellowships, LAMP fellows shadow a member of parliament for a year, starting from the monsoon session, till the end of the budget session. Assigned to the office of PD Rai, Lok Sabha MP from Sikkim, Shivam had an insider’s view, familiarising himself with grassroots politics in the north-east.
It was a defining experience and Shivam recalls working with the likes of Shashi Tharoor, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Dinesh Trivedi and Meenakshi Lekhi. "We became familiar with their life stories, their rise as politicians," he explains.
The parliamentary questions expose
Preparing parliamentary questions was an important part of the job. Shivam was puzzled to discover that some MPs seem to have their questions selected more than others. Each member of parliament can submit up to 10 questions each day, out of which five are picked for answering on the floor of the house. Although this is decided in a ballot process, something seemed awry.
The Parliamentary Questions system was extremely flawed but very valuable in keeping the govt accountable.
It didn’t even require any house time as most questions got only written answers! Read this investigation we did on the system to understand it.https://t.co/xWQOIA1nup
"Some MPs get most of their questions selected, while others get less than a third," Shivam explains. "There were three of us in Rai's office, two former LAMP fellows. We pulled the data and realised that the system had been completely rigged," he says.
The expose went viral, receiving attention from the upper echelons of government and even resulting in a policy change. "The rigging happened across party lines but most of them were from Maharashtra," Shivam laughs. "Today, I'm on great terms with a lot of them but at that point, they were pretty angry with me!," he adds.
Rebranding Captain Amarinder Singh
When the LAMP fellowship ended in 2015, Shivam returned to Kishor's I-PAC the following year. "I had a base in data analytics by then," he says. His return was during the run-up to the 2017 Punjab legislative assembly election and leading the charge for the Congress was Amarinder Singh. The Congress had hired Prashant Kishor for the campaign, and Shivam was soon on ground in rural Punjab.
"I was involved with the rebranding of Amarinder Singh. He was seen back then as unapproachable, as royalty and not a man of the people," Shivam explains. The first change Kishor, Shivam and the team made was to bring back Singh's army title - Captain. "Being in the army comes with a certain connotation - the general perception is of a man of action, who stands by his countrymen," he remarks. A massive media campaign followed, along with Amarinder making an election promise to visit every constituency. "He had never actually done this before," Shivam adds. "He didn't make it to all but he went to many."
The campaign also used technology in a way that hadn’t been done before in a state election, although Narendra Modi had set a precedent during his prime ministerial campaign in 2014. "We wanted everyone to know that the Captain had been to their constituency."
Entry and exit from the saffron party
The IPAC stint lasted five months, after which Shivam officially joined the data analytics wing of the BJP. Again, his arrival was timely - just ahead of assembly elections in Manipur (2017) and Tripura (2018). His was assigned with formulating election strategies and targetting voter groups through social media.
In June 2018, Shivam made a rather public exit from the BJP's fold, with a post on social media titled, 'Why I am resigning from BJP'. It went viral. "By that time it had become obvious that the campaign was mostly about religious discourse. It was a very different type of political messaging from 2014, when economic development was the focus. I knew I had to leave," he adds.
By this time, Shivam already had a reputation as a data analyst and political expert. Now he found himself showered with media attention.
It had its appeal - "you're automatically seen as an achiever, just because you have been on television," he says. Even so, he found that fame for fame's sake just wasn't what he wanted from life. "If it doesn't align with what you're actually trying to do, then it's of no use. I'm sure there are different ways of looking at it but this is mine," he adds.
‘Booked’ by Penguin Random House
Later that year, Penguin Random House made him an offer. "Prashant Kishor had signed a book deal but never got around to actually writing it. Penguin was looking for someone to talk about what a political consultant does. So they reached out to me after the Tripura election," he reveals. Writing a book appeared to be quite a challenge but he began anyway. How to Win an Indian Election hit the stands in 2019 and was an instant bestseller. "Luck has its role to play," Shivam grins. There is a glut of books on politics, "written by people who have a lot more media support. Since my book came just before the Tripura election, timing had a big role to play in its success."
What does a political consultant do, then? "Usually, we're standing around wondering how to stick posters to walls or figuring out how everything sounds through the speakers," he laughs. "People imagine us sitting around tables and chalking up strategies. This happens, yes but it's only a small part of the process."
Infowars and the art of conjuring realities
After his exit from the political fray, Shivam joined a data analytics firm that worked on the national elections. "There was a lot of talk on how data influences politics. Then I met Anand Venkatanarayanan," he says adding, "At the time, he was testifying as an expert witness in the Pegasus case." Venkatanarayanan is a cyber security and privacy researcher who broke the story of the hack of Kundunkulam nuclear reactor by the North Koreans. He was also called as an expert witness before the Supreme Court of India in the Aadhar case. Shivam and Anand are co-authors of The Art of Conjuring Alternate Realities. Shivam's second offering as a writer, the book was released in 2021.
"It began with a simple enough theory," Shivam explains. "Human power was once decided by physical strength and the size of the tribe. Then, money became the center of power - colonial powers didn't have large armies but they had more money than the nations they conquered. Now, that power is shifting to information and our ability to control it. If I can shape the information you see, I can shape your perception."
Beijing-bound
He intends for this to be his line of work after he returns from Beijing. "Political parties are now doing at the local level, what intelligence agencies once did across nations, to shape optics," Shivam explains. "We have a low resilience population with the potential for many cultural fractures. How will these issues be weaponised," he asks. "How will the information warfare play out? How do we educate people about it?"
(January 25, 2024) At 15, when most kids were in school and still working on deciding their career path, Vaibhav Mohanty was already accepted to Harvard. By 2019, the youngster had graduated from the University with a master's degree in chemistry (theory) and a bachelor's degree summa cum laude in chemistry and physics. But, if you think he is just another brilliant nerd, you are wrong. The young scholar is also quite an accomplished musician - a composer, arranger, pianist, saxophonist, and music theorist, who has performed across the United States and on international stages. "I am passionate about music and science," shares the scholar as he connects with Global Indian, adding, "My current goal is to extend my physics-based theories of evolution to understand how molecular-level structural changes in proteins can induce changes in evolutionary fitness of viruses and cancers." A student of Harvard Medical School and MIT, where he is pursuing medical training as well as a second Ph.D. (in chemistry), Vaibhav is the recipient of the prestigious Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans. "It’s an honour. It will help me connect with several other scholars who are working in the same field as I am
ncers." A student of Harvard Medical School and MIT, where he is pursuing medical training as well as a second Ph.D. (in chemistry), Vaibhav is the recipient of the prestigious Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans. "It’s an honour. It will help me connect with several other scholars who are working in the same field as I am and gain so much more knowledge from them," he says.
A beautiful mind
Born to Bidyut and Sangeeta Mohanty in Charleston, South Carolina - who moved to the USA in the early 90s - Vaibhav began learning piano at the age of four. "I wrote my first piece for solo piano in memory of a late elementary school teacher when I was nine years old," shares the scholar who loves watching old Bollywood movies with his parents. "Eventually, I began composing works for concert bands as well as chamber ensembles. I also performed in concerts as guest conductor for the premiere of my first symphonic work when I was about 12 years old." In fact, throughout and after high school, Vaibhav taught music at the summer SMAART programme of the Charleston County School District. Additionally, he taught music theory at a private music studio in Charleston as well.
Vaibhav has earned national recognition for his large wind ensemble and chamber works, which have been published by esteemed entities such as JPM Music Publications (Missouri), Lighthouse Music Publications (Ontario, Canada), Radnofsky-Couper Editions (Massachusetts), and C.L. Barnhouse Publications (Iowa). His compositions are widely distributed and regularly performed in the United States and various parts of the world. The scholar is also an active jazz pianist.
A brilliant student, who has often been the youngest one in his class, Vaibhav started working on gaining his footing both in the music world as well as the scientific world quite early in life. But ask him how such an accomplished musician turned to chemistry and medicine, and he quips, "Music and science happened in parallel for me. One of the main reasons why I was motivated to pursue a career in medicine is because of my own experience of being hospitalised, when I was nine. It was a short hospitalisation, however, I still clearly remember how amazed I was by all the technology present around me, especially the scanners. But what really convinced me was a high school thesis project, for which I was trying to understand when should a pregnant woman take ibuprofen or any other types of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs, and how can it negatively affect the embryo," shares the scholar.
[caption id="attachment_35437" align="aligncenter" width="553"] Vaibhav presenting the study he did for his senior thesis[/caption]
Speaking about his project further, Vaibhav adds, "So, I was doing very basic research using the chicken embryos, which were fresh out of the egg. I learnt that we can use different animal model systems to try and understand how this might have a negative impact on humans. That made me realise that I would like to contribute to this field and help people recover from illness or advise them through challenging times in their lives."
For a noble cause
After graduating from high school, Vaibhav joined Harvard University to pursue a bachelor's degree in chemistry and physics, with a minor in music. "While at Harvard, I was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa academic honour society as part of Harvard's Junior 24 and received a 2018 Barry Goldwater Scholarship for his physics research. As an undergraduate and master’s student, my published research papers spanned several interdisciplinary topics across the sciences and even music, including diffusion MRI physics, time-dependent quantum mechanics of graphene, and mathematical and geometrical models of voice leading in music theory," shares the scholar.
In 2019, the youngster received the prestigious Marshall Scholarship, which allowed him to pursue a PhD in theoretical physics at the University of Oxford’s Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics. "I must mention that it was one of the best experiences thus far. I got to work with the Condensed Matter Theory group with Professor Ard Louis to use statistical physics and spin glass theory to investigate fundamental properties of biological evolution," expresses the scholar, who earned his first Ph.D. (DPhil) in 2022, having submitted his dissertation titled “Robustness of Evolutionary and Glassy Systems” in under two years, at the age of 22.
So what next? "Right now I am quite busy with my research and hospital schedule at Harvard. I aspire to develop novel therapeutic approaches to combat diseases subject to evolution on fast timescales and to treat patients with such diseases. But, I want to continue my musical journey as well. I plan to perform around the US and other parts of the world," the scholar says.
(September 17, 2024) When Sri Nihal Tammana, founder of Recycle My Battery, turned 10, his father sat him down and told him about the world in which they lived. "It was my birthday and my dad said I had to be more concerned about what was going on around the world," says the US-based Nihal who is now 13 and has been running his non-profit, Recycle my Battery for three years. The Edison teen is the winner of the prestigious CNN Heroes Young Wonder Award, for his work in making sure that batteries don't end up in landfills or in the water supply. After that fateful conversation with his father on his tenth birthday, Nihal began watching the news. One day, he learned that a waste disposal plant had caught fire. He found that the cause was a lithium-ion battery that had been thrown into the trash, where it exploded. "I remember watching the chaos and it was super scary," he said. Nihal thought of his favourite toy - his drone, which also runs on batteries. "I asked my dad if anyone could do something about the problem and he said yes but they aren't trying to fix the problem.
lithium-ion battery that had been thrown into the trash, where it exploded. "I remember watching the chaos and it was super scary," he said.
Nihal thought of his favourite toy - his drone, which also runs on batteries. "I asked my dad if anyone could do something about the problem and he said yes but they aren't trying to fix the problem. I couldn't stop thinking about it." As he watched the news every day, he saw more stories on the news that were similar.
As he did his own digging, Nihal learned that billions of batteries are thrown away every year, at great cost to the environment and to humanity. Batteries work by converting chemical energy into electrical energy and as it happens, the chemicals required for the process - lead, lithium, mercury and cadmium all constitute hazardous waste. Some 15 billion batteries are thrown away annually across the world and, according to Nihal, only one percent of people know that lithium-ion batteries shouldn't be thrown away in the trash.
Importance of Battery Recycling
"Batteries power nearly all our devices and we are going to be using them more and more," Nihal explained. "I realised that the problem wasn't with batteries themselves but with what we do with them after they run out of juice." The answer, he knew, wasn't in banning them altogether but simply in disposing of them correctly. "I'm a realist," he remarks. "I can't imagine not using my battery-powered devices, not even for a day. The battery isn't going away and it won't help us to stop using them either. The answer is recycling."
For over a year, Nihal studied the impact of batteries on the planet. Then, he looked at solutions for the disposal process. He went door-to-door, talking to everyone who would listen about the issue. He also visited local businesses to make sure they were recycling properly. His cousin soon joined him and in 2019, they founded their own non-profit, Recycle My Batter. "We talked to everyone at school and around the neighbourhood. Many people decided to come and help out. Changing the way people think and act as a community is the most important thing we can do today."
School children in New Jersey rallied to his cause. Recycle My Battery then began setting up battery bins in offices, schools, public libraries and other locations, also working with Call2Recycle, the largest organisation of its kind in the US and Canada. A little over three years after it was founded, Recycle My Battery now functions with a team of 300 school kids, who spread awareness and install free-to-use battery bins in schools and other public locations. The organisation has collected over 225,000 used batteries, successfully keeping them out of landfills and ensuring that they recycled. "People have been very supportive," he remarks, adding that his efforts at school have earned him a new nickname - Battery Boy.
Nihal is also an active proponent of spreading awareness, which he does through conferences, webinars, email campaigns and going door-to-door. These efforts have helped them reach out to millions of people around the world. In 2020, over 20 school superintendents signed up for the installation of the battery bins on their premises. "That's more than 200 schools and over 200,000 students," Nihal says.
In December 2022, as Nihal received the CNN Heroes Young Wonder award, attending the ceremony at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. "The earth has done so much for us," Nihal said. "We should do something back. I hope that other people have an epiphany too and make a change, even if it's a small one."
Dhruv with his family[/caption]
Vaibhav presenting the study he did for his senior thesis[/caption]
