Winners of the 15th Annual Xylem Sponsored China Junior Water Prize Announced

GUANGZHOU, China, June 5, 2017 /3BL Media/ – In partnership with the Center for Environmental Education and Communication of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the winning team of the 15^th annual China Junior Water Prize sponsored by Xylem was announced on May 21, 2017 in Guangzhou.

Three hundred submissions from 18 provinces and cities were reviewed as part of this year’s competition, and 34 projects were selected as finalists. The winning team from the Second Middle School of Qingdao in Shandong Province includes Minzhang Li, Zekai Wang and Huilin Chen. These students will represent China at the Stockholm Junior Water Prize for their project "A Research on the Characteristics of a New Type of Chitosan Resins Synthetic and Its Application in Removing Heavy Metal Ion in Water.”

“Xylem has been engaged in the water industry for more than one hundred years. Since 2003, Xylem, in partnership with China’s Ministry of Environmental Protection, has been supporting the China Junior Water Prize. We devote our technology, time and talent to advance the smarter use of water, and we look to a future where global water issues do not exist,” said Shuping Lu, President of Xylem China. “We are delighted to see more and more students participate in this competition. We will continue to support this program to fulfill our social responsibilities, which is part of our corporate DNA.”

About Xylem
Xylem (XYL) is a leading global water technology company committed to developing innovative technology solutions to the world’s water challenges. The Company’s products and services move, treat, analyze, monitor and return water to the environment in public utility, industrial, residential and commercial building services, and agricultural settings. With its October 2016 acquisition of Sensus, Xylem added smart metering, network technologies and advanced data analytics for water, gas and electric utilities to its portfolio of solutions.  The combined Company’s nearly 16,000 employees bring broad applications expertise with a strong focus on identifying comprehensive, sustainable solutions. Headquartered in Rye Brook, New York, Xylem does business in more than 150 countries through a number of market-leading product brands. 

The name Xylem is derived from classical Greek and is the tissue that transports water in plants, highlighting the engineering efficiency of our water-centric business by linking it with the best water transportation of all -- that which occurs in nature. For more information, please visit us at www.xylem.com.

About China Junior Water Prize
The National Middle School Water Science and Technology Invention Contest and Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition (China Division), jointly organized by Center for Environmental Education and Communication of the Ministry of Environmental Protection (CEEC, MEP) and Xylem (China), has been held for 15 consecutive years since 2003. The contest aims to raise Chinese young people's environmental awareness and technological innovation ability, encourage them to actively participate in water protection related inventions, and support them to take part in water protection activities. In the past 15 years, hundreds of thousands of young people have participated in the contest, with a total of over 1000 winning projects. The contest has become the most influential middle school students' scientific, technological, and environmental protection activity.

In 2006, the Chinese project “Application Research and Practice of a Comprehensive Technology for Restoring Urban River Channels Ecologically” won the award of “Stockholm Junior Water Prize” in Sweden. The Chinese student representatives also won the “Diploma of Excellence” in 2007 and 2010, a special award next to the Prize Winner. Peter Forssman, chairman of Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI), once commented that those winning projects were of great foresight and should be widely spread, and the success of these Chinese student representatives showed their focus on natural environment and awareness of technological innovation. The National Middle School Water Science and Technology Invention Contest has effectively improved teenagers’ awareness of environmental protection, raised their concern on local and global water resources, cultivated teenagers’ innovation capability, and promoted the sustainable development of environmental education.

About Stockholm Junior Water Prize
The Stockholm Junior Water Prize (SJWP), established by Stockholm Water Found (SWF) in 1994, is a supplement to the well-known “Stockholm Water Prize.” From 1995 to 1996, the scope of prize was restricted to Sweden. Since 1997, as one of the most important international environmental prizes, SJWP has been awarded to students around the world who have made a great contribution to water environment study. SJWP is honored as “The ‘Nobel Prize’ of World Junior Water Science and Technology.”

Every year, all the countries involved in the international contest recommend select, winning students to participate. The contest has promoted the water-related education and protection activities of each country, as well as the environmental awareness of the public, particularly that of teenagers. The Stockholm Junior Water Prize has profound significance all over the world. The Swedish Royal Family gives great support to the prize, and more than 30 nations take part in the contest each year. CEEC is the Chinese organizer of “Stockholm Junior Water Prize”. China has organized competitions to select excellent works for the international contest every year since 2003. Competitors are invited to conduct innovative and practical projects in the fields of natural and social science to address water-related issues.

The award ceremony is held in August every year during the “World Water Week in Stockholm.” Each year, H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden personally awards medals and certificates to the winners.

About the Center for Environmental Education and Communications of Ministry of Environmental Protection (CEEC)
Founded in 1996, Center for Environmental Education and Communications of Ministry of Environmental Protection (CEEC) is a professional organization that aims to implement environmental publicity, education, and training. The CEEC’s focus is to develop national environmental education, communication initiatives, and environmental protection TV, film productions, and trainings. CEEC has built a network of national environmental education and communication initiatives and cooperated with international organizations, domestic and international enterprises, environmental protection NGOs, and universities and colleges, which has greatly improved the environmental awareness of the public and encouraged Chinese citizens to play a role in protecting the environment.

CEEC is also responsible for the national green school and green community activities jointly conducted by Ministry of Environmental Protection, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Civil Affairs and other ministries, aiming to improve environmental education of primary and secondary schools and environmental management, enhance environmental quality and practical ability of teachers and students, promote environmental autonomy conducted by community residents, and improve the environmental quality in urban communities. Collaborating with World Resources Institute and the well-known colleges and universities around the world, CEEC has implemented the Chinabell Project, focusing environment and sustainable development education in universities. For more information, please visit China Environment Online: www.chinaeol.net