Climatebase Fellowship
I was admitted to Climatebase’s highly selective in a 12-week intensive fellowship program. During my time at the fellowship, I focused on business and operations, covering topics ranging from energy to circular economy and manufacturing to nature-based solutions to engineered carbon removal.
Listening from experts, industry practitioners, and thought leaders like Dr. Johnathon Foley, Molly Kawahata, and Nate Rich have emphasized the need for a comprehensive approach to solving the climate crisis and that there is no silver bullet. Contributing to a market feasibility study and user research for NICE.car as part of my capstone project was one of the many memorable aspects of my Climatebase fellowship!
Bike MS
On May 1st, 2022, I biked 165 miles (~265 km) in two days to raise awareness and over $1000 to end humanity’s fight against MS. I appreciate everyone’s generosity and support throughout my fundraising process.
Multiple Sclerosis (MS is a terrible disease that impacts the brain and spinal cord, which make up the central nervous system and control everything we do. MS can cause unpredictable symptoms such as numbness, tingling, mood changes, memory problems, pain, fatigue, blindness, and/or paralysis. Despite the serious nature of this disease, there is not enough funding to know more about the cause and cure for this disease; this is where Bike MS comes in.
Bike MS is the world’s largest fundraising cycling series; each year, nearly 75,000 cyclists and more than 6,000 teams ride together to change the world for people with MS. This event happens all over the US. To date, this event has raised over $1.4 billion. I’m proud to have been part of this event!
njörd Run Crew
njörd is the god of wind according to the Nordic culture. But to me, njörd stands for a group of incredibly talented athletes who came together for the love of the sport of running but stick together to do good both for themselves and the communities they live in. I first got introduced to njörd, the running club, through my girlfriend (Who is an incredible runner herself). Despite not being a runner when I got introduced to the group, I stuck with the group because of its impact on the community and the people it touched. Training with this group, I went from someone unable to run a mile to someone who completed a half-marathon. I participated in many fundraisers that njörd organized for various local charities. I took part in a 30-hour running relay with this team. These are the events and activities through which one forms eternal bonds.
From mid-2021 to mid-2023 I have served as a founding member of njörd Run Crew, the service arm of the apparel business of njörd running. We leveraged a group of committed and passionate individuals of njörd to partner and work closely with three Houston area charities: A 2nd Cup – A non-profit coffee ship that fights against human trafficking; LEAD – an educational non-profit; and The Beacon – A non-profit that serves the homeless community. njörd, as a team and team members of njörd participating in various events, have raised over $10000 in fundraising money to benefit various charities. We truly live up to our motto of Service Through Sport.
Toastmasters
I have been an active member of Toastmasters International since August 2021. Since joining Toastmasters, I have given over half a dozen prepared speeches and many more impromptu speeches. Find Your Voice Toastmasters (our local chapter) has some wonderful speakers and mentors who have helped me immensely in my public speaking journey. In July 2022, I was elected to serve as the club’s treasurer on the local Toastmasters board. I am excited to serve my fellow club members in this new role and see where my Toastmasters journey takes me.
LEAD
LEAD stands for Letting Everyone Achieve Dreams and is a Houston area non-profit that works with kids from underserved communities. LEAD engages with kids in various ways, such as afterschool programs and weekends outside the school outreach programs. These weekend programs are aimed to expose LEADers (the kids in the program) to many different life experiences that the LEADers might not get to experience in their daily lives.
I volunteered with LEAD a few times a month with the mentoring program. I also started a STEM outreach program with LEAD, where I taught middle schoolers how to use basic 3D printing software and demonstrated how a 3D printer works. I also organized a Christmas event in 2021 where the kids and their families had to create and build a personal holiday ornament, share a meal, and exchange life stories. I continue to work with LEAD as a volunteer and mentor to the LEADers. Over the years, I’ve helped organize multiple fundraising 5k runs where we raised over $10,000 to send over 40 at-risk kids to summer camp. Working with LEAD has been one of the most fulfilling and enriching experiences of my life, and I look forward to my continued involvement with them.
Podcast -Netru Indru Naalai
Netru Indru Naalai. நேற்று இன்று நாளை. Translates to Yesterday Today Tomorrow.
One could say that I grew up in what some would call a “bubble.” I grew up in an extremely conservative culture. In our culture, we only do things a certain way. Any deviation from ‘the way things are supposed to be’ was severely punished by ‘society.’ Fearing the ‘society’ many things simply weren’t done even if it meant their individuals losing their personal freedom to an extent to which anything a person wishes to do, they inevitably think of what it would mean to the ‘society’ even before thinking about what it would mean to them. I saw my mother lose all of herself because of this very phenomenon. I saw countless other women in my life getting married at 21. Why? Because that is what the ‘society’ did, and don’t you dare go against the ‘society.’ Meanwhile, young girls’ hopes and dreams get crushed; they turn hopeless and feel crushed. This is just one instance amongst countless others.
Having lived outside the bubble, being outside my culture gave me the freedom to explore, and it permitted me to have a new perspective. I wanted to share this perspective with others. I wanted to explore how the actions and customs of yesterday shape our today and the changes we can make to influence our tomorrow. This is my goal and my mission for Netru Indru Naalai. I hope you like my work, and if you like it, please share the podcast with at least one person you know. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please feel free to reach out.
Mentoring
I am the first person in my family to attend and finish college. Regarding my education, I got plenty of emotional and financial support from my family. But my family couldn’t provide me with the sort of career guidance that comes with attending a college themselves. Thankfully, I always had mentors in some way, shape, or form. Mentors came from upper-classmen, friends of friends, and extended connections of my family members. My different mentors might not seem like they had a lot in common, but one thing they all shared was their ability to provide guidance and their ability to point me toward potential opportunities. I would not be where I am today if it were not for my mentors.
For this reason, I have been paying it forward to the next generation in every way I can. I mentor people who reach out to me online seeking guidance with school selection, providing resume reviews, talking to them about potential career trajectories, or helping them position themselves as the best possible candidate for a job interview. This YouTube video is just one example of my mentoring efforts. My virtual door is always open to anyone who would like to chat with me about their career; I will help you out the best I can.
Pi Tau Sigma
I transferred from my college in India to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in my Junior year. As an international student, I felt at home with PTS since most new initiates are juniors. I started with PTS by working on a project team where we built a 6 feet tall human-powered scissor lift. I started volunteering at a local elementary school to teach kids STEM concepts; I also participated in volunteering fundraising barbeque events (where I singlehandedly manned the BBQ grill and made plenty of burgers without having eaten a single burger in my life. I ended up as the initiate with the second-most number of points. I then contested in elections for two consecutive years and was elected as the Treasurer for the first year and the Internal Vice President for the year. I served in the office for 18 months before graduating from UIUC.
During my tenure in various elected positions at PTS, I oversaw four different project teams, planned & organized corporate information sessions and networking events, social events, multiple fundraising events, and volunteering events. During my tenure, because of the hard work of myself and other fellow officers, the PTS chapter of UIUC was selected as the best chapter in the nation among 182 chapters in the nation. I have made some great memories and valuable experiences and forged life-long friendships at PTS.