Alison Bick of Short Hills, N.J., has won the 2011 international Stockholm Junior Water Prize (SJWP)—the most prestigious international competition for water-related research—during a competition held in conjunction with World Water Week in Stockholm, Sweden.
Bick worked for four years on her project, “Development and Evaluation of a Microfluidic Co-Flow Device to Determine Water Quality,” which combines micro-fluidic devices, cell phones, and chemical indicators to test water quality. Her innovative method accurately assesses the bacteria content of water and is both significantly faster and up to 200 times less expensive than standard testing procedures.
Bick received $3,000 and an all expense paid trip to Stockholm to compete against national winners from 28 countries for the international honor. HRH Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden presented her with the international award—$5,000 and crystal sculpture—during a royal ceremony that was held in conjunction with the Stockholm Water Symposium.
Bick will also have the opportunity to present her research to thousands of water quality professionals at WEFTEC 2011—the Water Environment Federation's 84th annual technical exhibition and conference—this October in Los Angeles.
Source: Water Environment Federation
