SERVICE

Natarajan is involved in her professional community of astronomy and physics both nationally and internationally as well as with the larger science policy landscape in the United States.

She is deeply committed to institutional change in the service of equity and inclusion. Her work and advocacy are focused around issues of parity for all genders – ensuring equality of opportunity and leveling the playing field – in hiring, retention and access to resources; developing new mentoring networks for under-represented groups and ensuring teaching and learning environments are inclusive for all members to thrive.

Natarajan is enthusiastically engaged in science communication and science outreach. She is invested in the public dissemination of science with a particular focus on the demystification of the scientific process. Intellectually, one of her key goals has been to interrogate the doing of science from the inside – as an active participant within the scientific community – while simultaneously also being  able to critically understand the culture of science from the vantage point of an outsider. Her unique background in Science, Technology and Society Studies, while anchored in science permits her to reflect and learn more deeply.