Windsor student captures prestigious environmental award
Dave Battagello, Windsor Star Updated: September 20, 2018
A Windsor high school student has been named one of 25 winners of the prestigious U.S.-based Barron Prize — handed out annually to “young heroes” who improve their environment or community.
It is the latest honour for Marcus Deans, a Grade 12 student at Academie Ste. Cecile. The Barron Prize includes $10,000 to aid the winners in their service work or pursuit of higher education.
Deans was recognized for his invention of a water filter for use in developing countries that costs just $2 to manufacture and is made from everyday materials. His filter — called NOGOS — uses just sugar, sand and seashells to completely remove contaminants and bacteria from dirty water.
The invention previously earned him first place at the Canada-Wide Science Fair and a berth on Team Canada at the INTEL Science Competition.
Deans plans to soon begin field testing his filter and refining the design for mass production.
“I want to motivate other teenagers to pursue sustainable technology to benefit our planet,” he said. “I believe in inspiring young people to develop solutions to the problems they see around them.”
Deans was just one of two Canadians to be honoured this year by the Barron award selection committee.
The annual award was launched in 2001 and is given to young people between the ages of eight and 18 across the U.S. and Canada who best demonstrate such character qualities as compassion and perseverance, while making a significant or positive impact on the world.
Deans has also been conducting research into finding new compounds that could help with the development for drugs to treat Zika virus, a growing health crisis around the world.