For Tytan Taliaferro, a junior software engineer and the co-president of APL’s African American Culture Club, resilience paved the way for him to become the man he is today, fueled by educational values to instill change.

My goal is not only to be bold in a way where people's lives are enhanced by the technology I'm able to develop, but to continue using my skill set to inspire others that look like me who may doubt themselves. When skeptics fail to see your true capabilities, it is important to embrace your strength and know that through resilience, you will be able to excel on a path meant just for you.

The principal investigator of the Dragonfly mission to Saturn's moon Titan — and just the third female NASA planetary mission PI in history — Zibi Turtle is also leading the next generation of women in planetary science.

We have a number of ideas to broaden participation, engage the science community as well as the public, and bring in people who don't typically get to work on missions. That's among the reasons it's really exciting to get this [mission selection]. Because now we can start to hold some of the doors open.

Destructive hurricanes were a part of Pedro Rodriguez's life growing up in Puerto Rico. Now, it's no surprise that Rodriguez, a senior technical leader of multiple deep learning artificial intelligence projects at APL, has put his technical vision to use in life-changing ways.

Experiencing hurricanes, knowing especially what my family went through most recently, has played a huge role in my enthusiasm for this project. Once we started using this technology for disaster relief applications, I just knew it was an area we could profoundly impact. I want this to be a strength of our group for a long, long time.

With a longtime interest in health and environmental chemistry, geochemist Danielle Nachman is passionate about using her expertise to develop eco-friendly solutions that will filter and destroy dangerous forever chemicals and provide clean drinking water across the country. She’s leading a lab of researchers who have developed a portfolio of PFAS remediation technologies in recent years.

At APL, I’m given the chance to come up with sometimes wildly imaginative visions for research and am then given the resources to see those visions through.

Jay Brett has made advocating for inclusive policies in the professional sphere a crucial part of their time. Along with doing research in climate and oceanography, Brett has helped run a conference session on inclusive behaviors and co-authored a recent paper on best practices for including transgender and gender-diverse ocean scientists while at sea.

In my mind, to develop innovative science and technology solutions to national challenges, we need all the contributors we can get in that process…Every person is important to the aggregate success of our community, and no one should be left behind.

Victoria Wu is an analyst who works on a range of topics, including geopolitical and strategic issues. Being Chinese American and seeing China discussed in U.S. mainstream media inspired her to start learning about U.S. foreign policy in Asia — and, ultimately, to choose a career as a national security analyst.

People don’t expect a social scientist to work at APL, but I see my skills as part of a continuum of skills we need to tackle complex challenges. People-driven activities are at the heart of our research efforts, whether in new areas of work such as climate change or traditional efforts supporting the warfighter. These issues require the applied sciences and the social sciences.