During that moment I again looked up at the night sky again,
and I felt a sense of hope.
And that was something that kept me going,
and it gave me a sense of courage.
My name is Jagriti Luitel.
I was born in Kathmandu, Nepal, and right now I live in New Brunswick, Canada.
And I am an undergraduate STEM student at the University of New Brunswick.
At the age of 15, Nepal was hit by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake.
My interest in space had been omnipresent throughout my life,
but the earthquake experience turned it into a deep, lifelong fascination.
I definitely think that satellites have a very key role to play
when it comes to climate awareness.
Much later after the earthquake happened,
I actually found out that there were satellites companies
that used their imagery for rescue operations during the earthquake,
and that was like a mind-blowing moment for me
because right now, I’m here and I’m very excited
to see where I can take my interest in space next.
I found that it was very hard for me to find role models
that looked like me in this field.
So I found it very important to show people that girls can do anything they want.
Not just girls, anybody, but especially girls because
maybe they don’t have that exposure that’s necessary.
So I would tell them to stop caring about being likeable.
Just be yourself and lead through empathy.
And I would tell her to really find her own path
instead of trying to be somebody else.
Or like be the second somebody.
Be the first “you.”