Akshara Legala and Suditi Bhatt, two high school students from Sacramento, California, developed and tested greywater filtration systems with natural filters. Greywater is a way to recycle used water, and a method environmentalists tout to save freshwater resources for drinking while greywater could be used for appliances and agriculture.

Nurturing the next generation of scientists — like these young women — is one of our main goals at the Society for Science & the Public. To help us reach this goal, the Society recognized 20 students competing in science fairs throughout the country to recognize their STEM efforts. These Community Innovation Awards, part of the Society’s STEM Action Grants, recognize amazing young scientists.

Read on below to learn how their device works and how they first became interested in science.