Aerospace engineer Dr Anastasia Volkova is combining her passion for food and flight with business know-how to help farmers produce crops that don’t cost the Earth
After an undergrad degree and Masters in Europe, Anastasia came to Australia to study a PhD in autonomous systems at Sydney University. There, she founded FluroSat to use drones and satellite data to help farmers grow more with less.
This year, FluroSat joined forces with US AgTech startup Dagan to create software models that use satellite and sensing data to accurately measure how different farming practices can help trap more carbon in the soil.
“We are not just embracing productivity. We’re minimising the cost to the planet,” Anastasia said.
Engineers can do anything
From the Ukraine to Poland and Sydney to California, Anastasia has had a truly international career. She’s also raised millions of investment dollars for her business ventures, and is now the CEO of her third startup!
The technical skills Anastasia learned at uni mean she understands what’s possible. And her programming skills mean she can read code. She says her mum told her an engineering degree would give her the skills to do anything.
“That’s been true in my case,” Anastasia says.
Anastasia’s study and career pathway
- Bachelor of Science (Aerospace), National Aviation University (Kyiv, Ukraine)
- Master of Science (Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, Poland
- PhD, University of Sydney
- CEO and Founder, FluroSat, Sydney
- CEO and Founder, Regrow, US
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This article originally appears in Careers with STEM: Engineering 2021.
Author: Nadine Cranenburgh
Nadine is an electrical and environmental engineer who works as a freelance writer and editor. She loves creating articles and content about exciting and complex technology.
