Karina Popovich: Everyone is a Maker, Intersectionality, and More - Ep #75

Last year, Karina Popovich was honored as Teen Vogue's 21 Under 21 for organizing an international group of makers to produce 82,000 units of PPE.

After going back home to Brooklyn “mid-semester with her 3 [3D] printers”, she did research on understanding how to “print medical grade PPE and additional materials.” That grew into Makers for COVID-19 and a group of 170+ members and one of the largest Maker collaborations for COVID-19.

In that being said, Karina is the Founder of Makers for COVID-19. The Head of Education and Policy at Women in 3D Printing, and an AAAS If/Then Ambassador.

She is now at Cornell University in the Dyson School of Economics and Finance.

From a young age, Karina had a knack for making things (i.e. building bridges out of popsicle sticks when young) and solving problems. With a spine of great virtue, Karina continues a similar pursuit, just on a larger playing field.

As she progresses in her endeavors, she keeps the mission of increasing the presence and opportunity for females in STEM at the forefront.

Improving as she goes and impacting along the way.

Some of Karina’s experiences include: Working at Microsoft in doing research at NYU for microreactors and machine learning, working at Amazon as a Software Development Engineer Intern, being the President and Founder of Connect with Tech - where she taught kids in Tanzania how to program, and being the Founder of Wear Alpha - which is a 3D-printed clothing line with a mission to reimagine a culture in STEM that is empowering of girls and women.

Here awards include: COVID-19 Action Fund Award, KPMG Future Leader 2019, Technovation Regional Pitch Competition Winner, NCWIT National Honorable Mention & Regional Affiliate Winner, Amazon Future Engineer 2019, National Built By Girls Pitch Challenge Finalist, Verizon App Challenge State Finalist, and more.

Attached Things/Links Mentioned:
Karina’s Upbringing
Karina’s Full Story
[Everyone] Being a Maker/Builder
Women in STEM
Imposter Syndrome
Thought Leadership
Makers for COVID-19 (and Producing 82k units of PPE)
Prioritizing Health (and Prioritizing Weekends For Oneself)
Happiness and Self-Management
Connect with Tech
Internal Growth
Appreciating the Wins
“My parents struggled so much to get to where we are now, there’s no reason why I shouldn’t try to do everything, which can be detrimental to my mental health, so work life balance is important. But it’s definitely a driving force for me constantly doing stuff.” (Karina)

Chapters:
Introduction [00:00]
1) Starting up the discussion. [1:04]
2) What did you parents do when growing up? [1:40]
3) Was engineering always the way or did you evolve into being a maker? [6:30]
4) Intersectionality; everyone is a maker. (Karina) [10:00]
5) Once being at Amazon and Microsoft, what did you take away from their product building abilities? [14:00]
6) What is “Makers for COVID-19”? [18:40]
7) What have you learned in prioritizing your health amongst the juggling of pursuits? [20:00]
8) How did you make 82,000 units of PPE with 350+ makers?! [24:30]
9) Reflecting on the impact of “Connect with Tech”. [30:45]
10) How do you envision bringing your two worlds together with business and science? [33:00]
11) What was your learning process when learning how to make PPE? [37:15]
12) If you’re not growing, you’re flat-lining. [42:25]

Karina’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karina.popovich/
Karina’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karinapopovich/
Karina’s Substack (and an article): https://karinapopovich.substack.com/p/reflections-instead-of-resolutions-413
Karina’s Teen Vogue 21 Under 21: https://www.teenvogue.com/story/21-under-21-2020
Makers for COVID-19 Website: https://www.makersforcovid19.com/
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