Scientific Triumph: BGU Jusidman Center Student to Represent Israel in the Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition

Nitzan Ezra, a graduate of Makif Alef High School in Beer-Sheva, earned her ticket to the international competition after winning the "Stockholm Junior Water Prize in Israel." Her scientific research on "Growth-Promoting Bacteria Adapted to Help Plants Cope with Salinity from Irrigation with Saline Water" earned her this prestigious award.

Ezra enriched her intellectual world through the Alpha Program for Scientific Research at the Jusidman Center. Her research was supervised by Prof. Zeev Ronen, with assistance from Damiana Diaz, both from the Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research at Ben-Gurion University's Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research. "Agriculture is the largest consumer of freshwater globally, and this new research suggests that growth-promoting bacteria could enable the use of 'marginal water' (non-potable water) for irrigation in arid regions, while maintaining crop yield and plant health," explains Prof. Ronen. "Redirecting marginal water to irrigation will free up a significant amount of fresh water for domestic use."

The national competition was academically managed by Prof. Gedeon Dagan from the Faculty of Engineering at Tel Aviv University, with support from the Jewish National Fund's Water Fund and the Rachel and Manuel Klachky Fund.

The international Stockholm Junior Water Prize competition is organized by the Stockholm International Water Institute (www.siwi.org) and is held as part of World Water Week, under the auspices of the Swedish Royal Family. It is the most prestigious global award for youth engaged in water research, with Israel participating since 2000. Young water researchers from 32 countries around the world take part, and winners receive cash prizes of up to $20,000 from Princess Victoria. The upcoming competition is expected to take place in August.

In Israel, participating in the Stockholm Junior Water Prize competition aims to raise awareness among youth about the issue of water resource conservation and to encourage them to engage in scientific writing on this important topic. This year, 37 projects focusing on water sources and their conservation were submitted. Sixty-seven students from 26 schools wrote research papers, which were carefully examined by a judging panel composed of experts from academia, government ministries, and the private sector. "Nitzan Ezra's research marks a significant step toward finding solutions to the global water and food crises," the judges noted in their decision.