"When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too." - The Alchemist

Imagine you're the main speaker at a large event. Someone introduces you before you go up to speak. How do they introduce you in 75-100 words?

Harini Radhakrishnan is an incoming senior pursuing her major in Industrial Engineering, minor in Environmental Policy and Politics, and certificate of Data Science at Purdue University. Growing up in the Philippines put her at face with the consequences of climate change, and she has since been motivated to lead communities to combat climate change. She is currently a Climate Reporter for the Purdue Exponent, but was previously the President of Purdue Student Sustainability Council.

Why did you choose to do this internship?

I would like to pursue a career in geo data and climate change data analytics, and I believe the hard and soft skills this internship teaches me will be beneficial in my growth as an engineer and as an environmentalist.

CNI is igniting a leadership movement, and along the way we'll make sure Indiana becomes carbon neutral. What are three leadership traits you'd like to improve this summer? Define each in your own words and explain why you selected it.

1. Self-motivated: I hope to be more diligent in my work ethic, bounce back quicker in conflict resolution, and expand my skill set.
2. Confidence: I hope I develop greater trust in my skills through practice and preparation.
3. Decisiveness: I would like to make decisions earlier, by trusting my confidence more. Failing fast, failing often is more progress than wasting time making a choice.

What will you do this summer, specifically, to develop each of these three leadership traits?

1. Self-motivation: Use of planners/google calendar to stay on schedule
2. Confidence: Calling more people to schedule carbon inventories, taking initiative in meetings
3. Decisiveness: Deciding goals to accomplish at the beginning of the day as a guide to make decisions easier. Being flexible to change of ideas, and not falling in love with the first.

If you had to pick a favorite fictional character like a superhero or an historical figure, which one would it be? Why?

Tintin! This old-school investigative journalist goes on adventures with his dog, Snowy, to uncover mysteries and solve crimes. He was one of the first heroes I loved as a child, and I'll always remember how much his curiosity, determination, and drive for justice stood out to me in the books.

Aristotle: "A vivid imagination compels the whole body to obey it." Napoleon Bonaparte: "Imagination rules the world." Albert Einstein: "Imagination is more important than knowledge." Penn Jillette: "The world is pretending the breakthrough is in technology, the bottleneck is really in art." To create the future together we need to rouse and nurture our imaginations. What can you imagine? What might we become and accomplish together this summer?

I imagine that we'll be able to create something which motivates, educates, and activates people all around Indiana to create environmental change both within the walls of their homes, and in their communities.