February 11, 2025
During AIChE’s 2024 Annual Meeting in San Diego, two MIT ChemE undergraduates, Akorfa Dagadu and Jane Atkinson ’26, were recognized for their outstanding work.
Akorfa Dagadu ’26 earned first place in the Materials Engineering and Sciences Division for her poster, “Morphology of Enzyme-Random Heteropolymer Complexes,” while fellow MIT Chemical Engineering student Jane Atkinson ’26 took second place in the Food, Pharmaceutical, and Biotechnology Division for her poster, “Dissecting the Role of Mutant RAS Signaling to Drive High-Yield Cellular Reprogramming.” Dagadu also showcased her startup, Inshara, during the “Analysis and Assessment for Solving the Plastic Waste Crisis” session, co-chaired by Professor Jeffrey Seay and Shelby Browning from the University of Kentucky.
”The AIChE Student Conference was a very positive experience. I received valuable feedback on my research and had the opportunity to connect with fellow ChemEs who have a wide range of interests,” shares Atkinson. Working in the Galloway Lab, Atkinson’s research focuses on processes that reprogram common cell types into rarer, more difficult-to-isolate cell types. The insights gained from this work could have significant potential in advancing disease modeling, therapeutic screening, and cellular therapies.
Dagadu’s poster presented research on the structure of enzyme-polymer complexes, which show promise for advancing biodegradable plastic technologies. As part of the SuperUROP program in the Alexander-Katz group, Dagadu is exploring enzyme stabilization techniques to develop more efficient biodegradable plastics. In addition to her research, Dagadu is working to develop her communication skills to make chemical engineering research more accessible to diverse audiences.
In addition to the poster session, Dagadu showcased her startup, Inshara, in another session at AIChE. Motivated by the environmental challenges in her home community in Ghana, Akorfa founded Inshara, a startup focused on improving local waste management.
“I wanted to create something that could make a real difference—a recycling initiative that could empower people, clean up our neighborhoods, and inspire change.” Inshara is an app that empowers individuals to reduce plastic waste and mitigate environmental damage, such as clogged drainage systems that cause flooding. This grassroots, community-driven initiative has gained recognition through fellowships, grants, and was featured in Cell magazine’s February 2024 issue. Through her app, Akorfa is streamlining plastic recycling and helping reduce the environmental impact of waste in her hometown.
The 2024 AIChE Annual Meeting featured over 760 sessions and 6,000 papers. Akorfa and Jane were among 147 winners in the undergraduate poster sessions.