• Brooke Owens Fellow, Class of 2023

• Georgia Institute of Technology, Aerospace Engineering, ‘25

• Host Institution: Ball Aerospace

• Mentor: Charity Weeden

• Brookie Mentor: TBD

Ishani Peddi is currently in her second year at Georgia Tech pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering. Growing up in Irvine, California, Ishani knew early on that she wanted to make a lasting positive impact on the world. From reading about influential women in aerospace like Dr. Mae Jemison and researching ozone depletion in elementary school, to becoming team captain of her middle school robotics team, she realized that her deeply rooted interest in STEM could be used to make a difference. Despite being an individual with an incredibly diverse set of experiences and interests, all of these areas, for her, boil down to the goal of fighting climate change and making the engineering world more sustainable.

Professionally, Ishani has worked in a vast variety of roles and fields. In the startup sector, she worked as an Investor Connect Associate at ATDC, working closely with one of their MedTech portfolio companies. Before that, she worked as a Marketing Intern for an Ivy League EdTech startup. In the advocacy and political sector, she has worked as a fellow for state level political parties and advocacy groups, as well as on numerous political campaigns from the local to presidential level, working with and managing teams from all over the nation. Ishani is also a published author, often contributing articles to the online publication American Kahani, on issues ranging from the lack of female representation in STEM to youth climate activism.

At Georgia Tech, Ishani is involved in research at the Ben T. Zinn Combustion Laboratory. As an undergraduate research assistant, she is working on a project related to combustor noise pollution and acoustics. In addition to her aerospace related involvements, she is a member of the Georgia Tech Rowing Club, serves as a student leader through environmental and political advocacy organizations, and makes music through the campus Musician’s Network. In her free time, Ishani enjoys art museums, singing, live music, watching F1, and writing poetry.

As a Brooke Owens Fellow, Ishani is excited to be interning this summer with Ball Aerospace, in Washington D.C., working in Strategic Operations. She is incredibly grateful for this opportunity and hopes to inspire meaningful change in the world.