Nandana Goswami
She/Her
I am bi and I am a researcher in earth science.//
CW : Mention of abuse, mental illness, suicide
Hi I am bi and just finished my MS in Earth Sciences. Geologists are often expected to be in a relationship with rocks and I am no exception. 😎 I will soon be moving to the States to start my PhD and albeit a little tensed about the big change, I am really excited to face and embrace whatever life has in store for me next. During my PhD, I want to work on how tectonic processes have affected the climate in the past. I hope that the results of my research, however minimal they are, will contribute to the present climate crisis in some way. My interests though, are really varied and I hope to use those interests to become a thriving interdisciplinary researcher someday.
Apart from research, I have a thing for science communication and I love to teach people. I recently founded a science communication magazine with a few friends too. You might want to check it ( twitter handle: @cogito137 ) out and write for us if you want. If I start to talk about all my hobbies, I will probably never stop. There are too many! Sometimes you will find me invested in music while at other times you might find me trying to learn pottery techniques. But most of all, I really love to write and photograph. Travelling and learning different cultures and stories, especially those of indigenous tribes, and documenting them through photos and words, is a dream that I have.
I am an intersectional feminist concerned deeply about the ongoing humanitarian crises all over the world and a huge advocate of mental health awareness AND affordable treatment. I do and will always do whatever I can in my capacity to help the causes I believe in. When I was younger, I faced a lot of emotional, psychological and physical abuse alongside neglect. Being a victim of abuse, I developed chronic anxiety and depression very young, which eventually reached a suicidal stage too. I never felt good enough at anything, suffered from Impostor Syndrome and fear of abandonment while trying to people-please my way around to be accepted, for a very long time. A lot of my academic memories associated with the daily abuse were repressed too which sometimes makes life difficult for me still. But recently I started dealing with my trauma and have learned to be kind to myself and not just to others. Learning from my past while defining and understanding myself has been the biggest part of my journey. I was also in denial about my sexuality for a long time as I grew up in a homophobic environment. Recently my friend started a support platform for the queer students in our institute and I helped her start it. Helping with the platform and being a member helps a lot. Well, looks like the rainbow has finally started shining and the grey clouds can’t get me anymore.