Growing up as a science-track secondary student in Nigeria’s coastal city of Lagos, Olanrewaju Adetunji (ChemE PhD student) found himself inspired by the natural world and the complex processes that sustain life.
“One lesson that stood out to me was about cellular respiration and photosynthesis, including understanding how plants convert sunlight into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is the main source of energy at the cellular level,” he says.
“This highlighted the incredible efficiency and complexity of natural systems, sparking my interest in how these processes could be harnessed and optimized through engineering.”
Adetunji is one of four siblings and found additional inspiration from his parents — his father worked as a computer scientist and lecturer, while his mother was an entrepreneur and served as a pastor in his community.
“My parents inspired me and my three sisters to value hard work and education,” he says.
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