Highly competitive Fellowship awarded to School postdoctoral researcher Raju Chambenahalli recently secured the prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowship to work on his research project “PolyNewrethanes”, where he will design new catalysts and use these to prepare novel polyurethane materials. This success builds on Raju’s excellent track record in Chemistry. Raju was born to an agricultural family in a tiny village, Chambenahalli situated in Karnataka, a southern state of India. While Raju’s parents had not been to school, they knew the value of education and encouraged Raju to develop his studies, both in School and at University. Raju completed his MSc in Chemistry from Tumkur University. He subsequently obtained his PhD from the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (Thiruvananthapuram, India) under the guidance of Dr Ajay Venugopal, where his doctoral research focused on ‘cationic zinc hydrides for CO2 reduction’. Raju is currently a post-doctoral researcher in the School of Chemistry at the University of Edinburgh, working with Dr Jennifer Garden. His current research focuses on the design and synthesis of novel catalysts for synthesising block polymers. The whole team are absolutely thrilled that Raju has been awarded a Marie Curie Actions Fellowship, which is richly deserved! These Fellowships are highly competitive and Raju’s success is testament to his determination and ability. I am very excited to see the results of this project as it unfolds! Dr Jenni Garden This fellowship will not only provide monitory support but will also give Raju a greater degree of independence in developing his research ideas. These Fellowships are highly competitive and will provide an exciting springboard for Raju and his future career. Well done Raju! I am delighted to have been awarded the Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship! I had never dreamt much about the future but took one step at a time, keeping my options wide open. I was and am fortunate to have great teachers and mentors throughout my education and life, which has helped me to reach this stage. Dr Raju Chambenahalli This article was published on 2024-03-13
