WINTERVILLE, N.C. (WITN) – The teen who co-founded Environmental Social Justice Droners, formally known as Environmental Droners, is now up for an award for his efforts.

17-year-old Kean Dao is one of 150 candidates who have been chosen as finalists for the Global Student Award.

Out of those candidates, 50 will become winners. The top prize is $100,000. They will be announced at the end of this month.

Dao has had a busy summer. He was a camp counselor with Love a Sea Turtle and will also host a three-day droner camp.

Environmental Droners uses drones to film polluted areas, along with a mobile app to identify where trash removal is needed.

The ‘Social Justice’ addition to the name is tied to the fact that Dao says he noticed underprivileged areas tend to be disproportionately impacted by litter.

Dao has joined us on ENC at Three in the past to discuss his group’s efforts and the inspiration behind its creation.