About this event
Join the Department of Anthropology for a talk on “The power of being the impossible: What happens when the life you want doesn’t fit neatly into a single path?” by Manju Bangalore. Reproductive health scientist, astronautical engineer, nonprofit founder, actor, author, and 2027 astronaut Bangalore has built a career across fields that are rarely found on the same résumé. But that trajectory wasn’t the result of a perfectly mapped-out plan. It grew from curiosity, unexpected opportunities, rejection, reinvention, and a willingness to pursue interests that didn’t always seem to belong together. Drawing from her childhood in rural Oregon, her years at the UO, and an interdisciplinary career spanning NASA, reproductive health research, storytelling, and social impact, Bangalore explores what becomes possible when we stop treating our interests as competing choices and instead question the paths we inherit, embrace the connections others may not yet see, and build a life that might not have an existing blueprint. Bangalore graduated from the UO in 2018 in physics and math and completed a master’s degree at USC in aerospace, aeronautical and astronautical engineering in 2026. She is the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Operation Period, interned at NASA and the White House, was Miss Oregon USA, and is author of the children’s book You Can Be All The Things You Want To Be. Sponsors: Department of Anthropology, Center for Undergraduate Research and Engagement, Office of Distinguished Scholarships, McNair Scholars Program, Women in Science and Math Academic Residential Community.
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