2025 High School Winners

Anwitha Aruva and Hannah Allas are in the 10th grade at Santa Clara High School in Santa Clara, California. They heard about the World of 8 Billion video contest through their school’s 49ers STEM Leadership Institute program where they were asked to create a video as part of a class assignment. They were both excited to participate because they are “interested in and care about biodiversity and the health of the planet’s ecosystems, especially as populations expand and put more demands on natural environments.” Anwitha and Hannah were aware that population growth impacts rainforest ecosystems but didn’t understand the depth until they started researching for their video. They were surprised to find that globalization from a growing population is one of the biggest contributors to pollution in rainforests, contributing to decreased ecological stability and biodiversity loss.

Hannah shared that through their research, they learned about bioremediation, the breakdown of pollutants by microorganisms, and they wanted to amplify that solution since it was a natural process and not well-known. They had participated in the World of 8 Billion contest the past two years but this year they wanted to do something different and creative, so they made all of their drawings and animation using Canva. Anwitha shared that the most challenging part of the process was editing their video. It was time consuming and difficult, and they might use a different tool in the future to help with editing. Some advice they have for future participants is to focus on time management at the start—leave extra time to pivot or change the direction of your video and make sure to leave plenty of time to edit your video before it is submitted.

Outside of creating videos, Hannah loves to get boba and hang out with friends. She also has been playing the piano since the 1st grade, is part of a girl scout troop, and is on the color guard and winter guard at school. One of her recent girl scout troop projects was planting milkweed for endangered butterflies in the area. Anwitha likes to go on walks, baking for friends and family, and volunteering at the local community garden and food bank. She also likes reading and recently finished some books by Jane Austin and George Orwell. They are both inspired by their parents. Anwitha says she “learned a lot about determination, work ethic, and being passionate” from her mom. And Hannah shared that her mom always inspires her to try new things because “if you never try, you never will know.”

Hannah is interested in pursuing a medical career after high school; she has always been fascinated about how the human body works and she enjoys learning about biology. Anwitha would like to pursue a career in business management or finance. She shared that even though it won’t be a direct role in her future career, she plans on “staying committed to working in environmental preservation whether it is through supporting eco-friendly businesses, advocating for sustainable practices, or investing in projects that promote environmental conservation”.