What we throw away is usually still worth something.

Lead author, independent research · Manuscript under review at the peer-reviewed International Journal of Life Sciences

A study comparing a bio-organic, waste-derived approach with conventional sugarcane farming in Karnataka, using benchmark figures from published field trials. The bio-organic scenario produced slightly less cane, but lower production costs left net income higher, which suggests that yield alone is a poor measure of whether a farming method is working.

• Production costs ₹18,500 → ₹9,500 per hectare
• 4.55% lower yield, higher net income
• Circular bioeconomy

Abstract published in conference proceedings · Full paper in progress

Presented orally at the International Gaziantep Scientific Research Congress. The abstract appears in the conference proceedings, and I'm now co-authoring it into a full paper with my economics teacher.

Co-Head, Computer Science Literacy · Rural government schools

Many students in the rural government schools we work with had never switched on a laptop. Project Setu exists to close that gap. The ability is already there; what is missing is access.

• 500+ students reached
• 100+ in the curriculum
• 10 schools
• 5-part curriculum
• $3,000 Global Youth Action Fund award

What we teach

After our first nine months, we turned our teaching into a structured five-part curriculum, taught in mostly weekly classes from August to November, with breaks during exam periods. More than 100 students are working through it, and it ends in a Digital Showcase where they present their work to teachers, peers and parents. Students learn to:

• Use a computer with confidence: hardware, keyboard shortcuts, folders, saving files and safe browsing.
• Create documents: formatting text, tables and images in Google Docs or Word.
• Work with data: organising tables and applying SUM, AVERAGE and COUNT in Google Sheets.
• Use AI responsibly: writing image prompts in Google Gemini to create Karnataka-inspired artwork.
• Present: building a “My Project Setu Journey” deck and presenting it at the showcase.

Students are assessed on a three-level rubric across five areas, from file management to presentation confidence, and each part comes with specific guidance for our volunteers.

My role

• Co-lead the computer science literacy programme and teach students directly, from opening Chrome for the first time to presenting work of their own.
• Co-wrote the curriculum and its assessment rubric with the team, including the guidance our volunteers follow.
• Raised funds with the team to donate laptops so teaching could continue remotely.
• Mentor incoming co-heads from Grades 9 and 10 so the programme continues after I graduate.

Recognition

As co-lead, I contributed to the application that won Project Setu's computer science literacy programme a $3,000 award from the Global Youth Action Fund.

Republic Day

On India's Republic Day, 26 January, our students delivered a Republic Day presentation in front of their school.

Workshop organiser

I ran four weeks of e-waste awareness workshops in my own community, going household to household to explain what happens to electronics after they're thrown away, and collecting what people were ready to hand over.

• 12–13 households
• 5+ kg collected
• 2nd place citywide

Co-Founder · Resident-led club, 83-villa community

I co-founded this club to promote environmental awareness, climate action and sustainable living across my 83-villa community, through resident-led projects aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. I lead a team of two.

Its first project is CommonGround, a resident-run exchange that circulates books, planters and household goods.

• Grew participation from 22 to 30 households, 36% of the community, and facilitated 50+ item handovers.
• Extending CommonGround into a digital resource map on Google Forms and Sheets, to collect opt-in listings, coordinate exchanges and track confirmed handovers.
• Documenting an operating guide and training volunteers within my society, so the project keeps running and its impact lasts.

Leadership committee · Udupi, Karnataka

Saphalya Trust was founded in 2019 by a group of women professionals, educators and social contributors, and works at the grassroots level on rural education, sanitation, environmental awareness and community welfare. I have been involved with its initiatives since Grade 9.

• Led more than 30 tree-plantation drives across villages over four years, organising and coordinating a team of more than 100 volunteers.
• Contributed to waste-segregation initiatives aligned with the Government of India's Swachh Bharat Mission.
• On a visit to Mandarthi village, noticed that households lacked adequate toilets, spoke with villagers about their needs and raised it with the Trust, which assessed the need and completed a toilet-construction project benefiting hundreds of households.

Other projects with the Trust:

• Proposed a free community library for Udupi in 2023 with Lions International. Raised around ₹50,000 door to door across my neighbourhood and a nearby community of 800 villas, paying for its shelving, tables and chairs. Collected over 750 books, from exam material to fiction, so the city has somewhere quiet to read at no cost.
• Ran a planting session for over 100 students at a local school, teaching them to grow eco-friendly medicinal plants rather than ornamental ones. The saplings they put in the ground are now full-grown trees.
• Took 50 to 60 students from SVST High School into the paddy fields, where they waded in and planted seedlings by hand.
• Raised ₹20,000 in donations to buy an electric rickshaw for a local teacher who needed one.

This work is what sent me looking for something I could do during the school year too, which is how I ended up teaching at Project Setu.

Investment Research Intern

Worked with the firm's research team for 60–72 hours, analysing market information and evaluating investment opportunities.

Intern

A six-week internship, about 60 hours, at a wealth-tech platform for mutual funds and goal-based investing. I benchmarked mutual funds on historical returns and volatility, building side-by-side comparisons in Google Sheets.

Participant

A twelve-week business programme — my first proper introduction to how companies actually make decisions.

International

Awarded to Project Setu's computer science literacy programme, which I co-lead and which reaches 500+ students across 10 schools. I now mentor incoming co-heads from Grades 9 and 10 so the programme's impact lasts beyond my time.

International

Selected to present research on AI, labour substitution and inclusive growth. The abstract was published in the congress proceedings.

Citywide / Regional

For a four-week door-to-door e-waste awareness and collection drive in my neighbourhood.

International

Cambridge International Certificate of Education group award for performance across 8 IGCSE subjects spanning all five Cambridge subject groups.