Busy student works on climate solutions in the lab – and comedic relief on the stage

On Wednesday evenings, you'll find Ojas Sanghi performing comedy with no script, no set and no props. His weekly shows with the Comedy Corner student improv comedy group are a release from his packed schedule of lab research and extracurricular community work that can often top 50 hours per week.

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Sanghi, 20, who pronounces his name "OH-jus SONG-hee," is a junior at the University of Arizona majoring in computer science with a minor in future Earth resilience.

Sanghi was born in Florida. He moved around a lot during his childhood and eventually settled in Tucson with his parents and one of his sisters before starting high school.

With the pandemic hitting at the end of his sophomore year, he spent his time mastering coding and, during the 2020 election season, getting invested in climate issues and politics. 

Because Tucson felt like home, committing to the U of A just made sense, Sanghi said. He wanted to go to a school with a college-town feel and continue his work with the Tucson community organizations he had already joined.

Working with ‘some of the smartest people in the world’

Today, Sanghi is a student worker in the lab of Adam Printz, assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering.

"Some of the smartest people in the world are just at the U of A in a random room, and you'd never know if you didn't get into research," Sanghi said.

At the beginning of Sanghi's second year at the U of A, he wanted to join a research group where he could apply coding to climate issues. He came across the Vertically Integrated Projects program and applied for a student position in Printz' lab. The next day, he was offered a job.

"It is fantastic to have students in the lab – undergraduate students in the lab, particularly, because they bring a perspective that is different," Printz said. "The more expertise you gain in something, the more narrow your focus can be. And honestly, undergrads ask the best questions. Beyond that, it's great to watch students grow and learn and get excited about doing the research and the science."

Sanghi is working on developing 3D printable solar panels in the Printz lab.

"Prototypes of them exist, but they're not very stable and degrade when exposed to the sun, which is a problem if you're trying to make solar panels," Sanghi said. "I do coding work to model different versions of the solar panel and find ways to make them stable."

Sanghi believes the lab position is critical to his career prospects and believes the real-world research experience will help him get accepted into graduate school. 

"Adam is super open to talking about grad school and his experience with it," Sanghi said. "Working in his lab has been life-defining in terms of what I am going to do and what experience I have."

Sanghi ultimately wants to work on artificial intelligence technology for clean energy systems. He is looking into graduate school programs at the University of California, Berkeley, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University College London. 

"Ojas is super driven and is just one of the hardest working students I've seen – not just in the lab," Printz said. "We like to joke that Ojas will be president one day."

Over the summer, Sanghi started an internship with Sandia National Laboratories. He credits his experience in the Printz lab as the defining factor that helped him secure the internship.

Working toward a sustainable future

In addition to Sanghi's research work, climate activism is also a priority for him. 

He serves as vice president of a student-led organization that encourages the university to put a focus on clean and sustainable energy sources.

"Over the past year, the U of A has been developing a climate action plan, so we have been working with them," Sanghi said.

Sanghi was a member of the Responsible Sourcing and Investment Working Group, which examined the purchasing and investment practices of the university and proposed initiatives to improve both. 

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Sanghi is also the co-lead of the Tucson chapter of Arizona Youth Climate Coalition, which has been collaborating with the Tucson Unified School District on a climate action resolution. The plan, which was approved by the Tucson Unified Governing Board on Oct. 29, commits the entire district to net zero emissions by 2040. 

"The resolution that AZYCC has made is entirely student-researched, youth-researched and youth-written," Sanghi said. "It is the country's most comprehensive school climate action resolution."

Sanghi is also the youngest member of the city of Tucson's Commission on Climate, Energy and Sustainability, which advises the mayor and City Council on climate-related issues. 

To balance out his academic activities, Sanghi is involved in the LOCKS Junior Honorary, which is focused on philanthropy and community service. Since the honorary is only a few years old, Sanghi – as this year's philanthropy chair – has big plans to make the group more active in supporting local organizations. 

Sanghi's advice for balancing an intense schedule? Find a creative outlet. For Sanghi, that has always been theater, even before he came to the U of A.  

"I used to stutter super bad when I was young," Sanghi said. "I could not finish a sentence without taking a minute to say it. For the first year at U of A, I did not do any theater, and I was just super sad. Then I came across Comedy Corner, just by chance, and started my sophomore year. That changed my life."

Performing with the student improvisational comedy group every week has helped him reconnect with his past and has "kept me sane," said Sanghi, who plans to keep the laughs going and continue to perform improv after graduation.

Kyra Berg is a student writer in the Office of University Communications.