3 Indian Teens Remove Microplastics Using Tamarind Powder

When Vivaan Chhawchharia, Ariana Agarwal, and Avyana Mehta set out to tackle microplastic pollution, they found their answer in the most unexpected place: their kitchen pantry.

The three 16-year-olds from India discovered that powdered tamarind seed naturally binds with microplastics in water. After a quick stir, the clumped particles can be removed with an ordinary handheld magnet.

Their invention just earned them the Asia Earth Prize 2026 and a $100,000 prize to develop their solution. The teens named their creation "Plas-Stick."

The breakthrough came after the team visited a rural community where families store drinking water in shared containers. They saw firsthand how people without access to expensive filtration systems were drinking water contaminated with invisible plastic particles.

Microplastics have been found everywhere scientists look, from Mount Everest's peak to the deepest ocean trenches. These tiny particles, some as small as one-thousandth the width of a human hair, have shown up in every human organ tested, including the brain and placenta.

Over 2.2 billion people worldwide lack safely managed drinking water infrastructure. Most rely on stored water that may contain these harmful particles.

The teen team designed Plas-Stick to work without electricity or complex equipment. Users simply add the biodegradable tamarind powder to water containers, agitate briefly, and pull out the clumped microplastics with a magnet.

Tamarind trees already grow widely across South Asia, both cultivated and wild. This makes the solution affordable and accessible to the communities that need it most.

The Ripple Effect

The Earth Prize award will help the trio establish decentralized production hubs across India. Their goal is to scale the solution to rural communities throughout the entire sub-continent.

"Winning The Earth Prize is incredibly meaningful for us, because it validates a problem that is often invisible but affects communities across India every day," the team said. "This support allows us to take it beyond pilot schools and scale it to many more communities that need it most."

The Earth Prize was founded in 2019 to transform climate anxiety into action. With 59% of young people reporting extreme worry about the environment, the competition gives students a pathway to create real-world solutions.

Three teenagers just proved that world-changing innovation doesn't require a fancy lab, just curiosity, compassion, and a well-stocked spice cabinet.