Women Who Reign: Chinmayi Balusu

“Los mejores momentos de la vida son los más simples.” A Spanish quote that translates to “the best moments in life are the simplest ones.”
Take time to admire the small, simple, forgotten things around you-they’re oftentimes the ones that are most impactful.

Meet Chinmayi Balusu! She was the 1st place grand prize winner of my regional science fair as well as a finalist in the 2019 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), the premier science competition for high school students. She was also champion of the Sacramento Brain Bee, a high school neuroscience competition and represented her region in the USA National Brain Bee. She has received the Daily Point of Light Award and Presidential Volunteer Service Award for her volunteer work. Chinnmayi was named Grand National Champion by the United World Taekwondo Association in 2017, and she was a three-time finalist for National History Day California (top 12 for individual documentaries in the state).

Tell us about yourself along with a fun fact!
My name is Chinmayi Balusu, and I’m a 17-year-old from northern California. I am currently an undergraduate student at Columbia University interested in the life sciences and medical humanities. I’m a nature lover, student researcher, girls in STEM advocate, leader, neuroscience enthusiast, sometimes poet, and quirky human in general.
Fun fact: I’m a 3rd-degree black belt in taekwondo!

Favorite website / app:
I use Notion for organizing tasks, tracking my bucket list, jotting down notes, etc. One of my favorite apps is called One Second Everyday, where I record a one-second video every day and combine them into a large video compilation-I’m trying to put together one for everything I’ve done in 2020! Additionally, Twitter has been great for connecting with other STEM and science communication folks-I always appreciate their innovative insight, guidance, humor, and more!