CNN honors Edison teen as a 2022 Young Wonder hero

EDISON - Thirteen-year-old Sri Nihal Tammana has a mission to help save the Earth.

Not only does he want to raise awareness of the dangers to the Earth posed by thrown-away batteries, he also wants to create solutions for the future.

"Did you know that only around 1% of people know about proper battery disposal?" he said. "That’s something that needs to change."

Nihal's mission has caught the attention of many, winning him and his non-profit organization, Recycle My Battery, dozens of accolades and awards, including being named a 2022 Young Wonder at the 16th Annual "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute," which aired live on Dec. 11.

All that is wonderful, the Woodrow Wilson Middle School 8th-grader said, because it brings attention to his mission − educating the public and helping people recycle batteries.

"Every year, close to 15 billion batteries are thrown in the trash globally," he said. "Most of these end up in landfills. This can cause catastrophic fires, pollute the environment with dangerous chemicals, and contribute significantly to climate change by emitting greenhouse gases. "

Nihal and the volunteers at Recycle My Battery are working hard to change this, engaging with governments, otherorganizations, and people all over the world.

It was on his 10th birthday that Nihal found his calling.

A television program detailing the dangers of batteries caught his attention. Shocked, he researched the issue and searched for a better way

Now Nihal lives by his organization's motto − "If I can make earth a better place to live, you can! If you can make Earth a better place to live, we all can!"

Since its creation in 2019, Recycle My Battery has recycled more than 225,000 used batteries, keeping them out of landfills and ensuring they are safely recycled.

Additionally, the campaign has educated an estimated 10 million people. The organization manages collection bins across the country and works to teach people to properly dispose used batteries.

This is just a start, said Nihal, who lives in the township with his father Vamsi, mother Deepita and younger sister Nithya, 8, who also is involved in the Recycle My Battery campaign. All Edison public schools have a Recycle My Battery bin.

"She's helping us out in placing battery bins and collecting the batteries," he said. "So she's basically telling her friends about the importance of proper battery disposal and she's helping to manage the bin in the elementary school."

Nihal wants to tackle the issue of battery disposal on a global scale.

"This is a roadmap we plan on achieving in the next 10 to 15 years. Now, we need to spread the message and place battery bins across the United States of America and then across the world," said Nihal, who also recently received the 2022 Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes, which comes with a $10,000 scholarship. "Kids are our future. So we're trying to onboard as many schools as possible."

Recycle My Battery also has enlisted the help of stores like Staples and Best Buy, leasing offices and municipal buildings. Many have the free-to-use recycle bins on site. Nihal and his crew of volunteers pick up the batteries and have them recycled.

More than 300 students in the U.S., India, Canada, Switzerland, UAE and Egypt are now involved in the initiative.

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"CNN Heroes" was co-hosted by Anderson Cooper and Kelly Ripa, and Nihal was pleased he met some of his own heroes, including Cooper and Bill Nye “The Science Guy,” who was a presenter. Other presenters included Adam Scott, Aubrey Plaza, Holly Robinson Peete, Justin Theroux, Kristin Davis, Iman Vellani, Naomi Campbell, Simu Liu, Tenoch Huerta and Zoey Deutch.

" It was so cool. I never knew this opportunity would come," he said. "I always wanted to be on CNN, because I realized that that would be the best opportunity to educate more people and recycle more batteries. So when I found out that I was the Young Wonder for this year, I was really, really excited. And I felt really happy to be getting this award. And I know now that we have our greatest potential to educate more and more people, so I'm really excited."

Cooper and Nye complimented Nihal on his work and encouraged him to continue to "save the Earth."

"They called it a really cool initiative and said to "keep doing the work to save Mother Earth'," Nihal said. "They said I was doing a really great job and keep doing what you're doing − it's really good work."

In the future, Nihal would like to major in environmental science in college and eventually invent his own eco-friendly battery.

"I really like science and I want to study Physics and Chemistry and learn about the environmental impacts on the Earth like climate change and everything," he said. "So I can use all this to make my own eco-friendly battery, which will use 0% of harmful chemicals and it will be able to be thrown away into the trash. So, it will be good for performance and for all of us to enjoy and all the environment and the Earth will also enjoy it as well as it will be very sustainable. I will learn more engineering and environmental science so I can use all the things which I've learned to benefit all."

For information, become a member of Recycle My Battery, or request a battery bin for a school, go to RecycleMyBattery.org and www.CNNHeroes.com.

email: cmakin@gannettnj.com

Cheryl Makin is an award-winning features and education reporter for MyCentralJersey.com, part of the USA Today Network. Contact: Cmakin@gannettnj.com or @CherylMakin. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: CNN honors Edison teen as a 2022 Young Wonder hero