Christopher Lofts

Background

About Christopher Lofts

I am a chemical engineer-in-training in pursuit of a sustainable future. I'm in the third year of my undergraduate education at Vanderbilt University with majors in Chemical Engineering and Chemistry. Supplementing my education is my research with peptide synthesis and click chemistry in Vanderbilt’s ImmunoEngineering Lab, the mentorship that I received in Dr. Steven Townsend’s organic chemistry lab, my summer spent taking classes on sustainable resource management and economics, and my current summer internship working with downstream bioprocesses as a Manufacturing Science & Technology Intern with Merck. I look forward to continuously expanding my experiences in industry, class, lab, and beyond. During my time at Vanderbilt, I have formed close relationships with my cohort of fellow ChemE's. Exhausted by combustion and phased by organic separations, many of our classes left us feeling underprepared to enter the forefront of chemical engineering, the subfields revolutionalizing sustainability and global health: biomanufacturing, immunoengineering, and energy systems, just to name a few. Unsatisfied with our petrochemical-obsessive textbooks, we approached our professors with a demand. We want a curriculum that reflects the constantly evolving field of chemical engineering and prepares students for their desired careers innovating tech to mitigate climate change, prevent the next pandemic, and clean our waterways, among other pressing issues of our time. Our professors have listened and they are evolving our curriculum to match the change we need as students, as a school, and as a society. I am excited to develop a career pursuing innovations at the forefront of chemical engineering, particularly within the realm of sustainable biochemical processes enabled by biocatalysis. Outside of my academic and career pursuits, I am a musician. I play classical piano and cello and have the honor of performing alongside the 100+ members of the 100% student-run Vanderbilt Commodore Orchestra. I’m also a swimmer of many years. My racing days are far behind me but I now enjoy staying active with the other members of the Vandy Swim Club and coaching the next generation of champions at the Nashville Aquatic Club.