New Jersey girl, 11, builds moss filter designed to remove 95% of lead from water
11-year-old Nithya Tammana has developed a moss-based filter capable of removing 95% of lead from drinking water. Her initiative, 'Save Drop,' has grown into a youth-led network focused on water conservation and environmental advocacy.
Why it matters
This highlights the potential for youth-led innovation to address critical public health and environmental infrastructure challenges.
At nine, Nithya Tammana noticed something happening in her own home that many people might have overlooked: clean drinking water was going down the drain while the shower water was being heated. Two years later, the girl from Monroe Township, New Jersey, has built a youth-led water conservation network, developed a nature-inspired filter designed to remove lead from school drinking water, and taken her campaign for water sustainability to policymakers.Her initiative, Save Drop, began in February 2024 with a simple idea - that small, everyday habits and larger infrastructure changes both matter when it comes to protecting water.
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