iGEM in itself is a project that takes the greater part of a year and a full commitment. For me, specifically, I was pretty much thrown into the deep end regarding leading and organizing a team, as it wasn’t something I had a lot of experience in. But thankfully, I had the help of everyone around me, who was always supportive and understanding.

As a team, we all knew that we had the same common goal and were willing to do whatever it took to reach it together. With that kind of mindset, any possible setbacks were overcome through good communication.

This project was truly one of the first big pieces of work that I was a part of where I could confidently say that I could see the real-world impact and the avenues for long-term growth, which awakened a side of me that I hadn’t necessarily known about.

I found myself the most motivated to work when I could see the vision for the long-term implications of the project—more so than just the gold medal at the end or the completion of the project—but truly creating meaningful work for the betterment of society.