The 2026 class of CAS Future Leaders, a prestigious leadership and career‑development programme run by CAS (a division of the American Chemical Society), includes a strong contingent of Indian‑born and Indian‑origin scientists. The 31 early‑career researchers, selected from top PhD and postdoctoral programmes worldwide, will participate in an intensive training initiative culminating at the ACS Fall 2026 meeting in Chicago.
The 2026 cohort of CAS Future Leaders has been unveiled, spotlighting 31 early‑career scientists poised to become the next generation of scientific leaders. A notable feature of this year’s roster is the prominent representation of researchers of Indian birth or origin, many of whom began their academic journeys at premier Indian institutions before moving to North America or Europe to specialise in areas such as molecular electrocatalysis, neurodegeneration, and data‑driven chemistry.
The CAS Future Leaders programme, run by CAS, a division of the American Chemical Society, selects outstanding PhD candidates and postdoctoral scholars for an intensive leadership and career‑development initiative. Participants gain training in communication, team building, and interdisciplinary collaboration, with the programme culminating at the ACS Fall 2026 meeting in Chicago, where they present their latest findings to the global scientific community.
Among the awardees is Vishal Yadav, a postdoctoral fellow at Pennsylvania State University and an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, who completed his PhD in chemistry at Johns Hopkins University. Yadav cites former Indian President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam as a major early inspiration. “This recognition highlights something I care deeply about – leadership,” Yadav said. “For me, that has meant building community and helping create spaces where people can show up fully in science.”
Another standout is Nitesh Sanghai, a researcher at the University of Manitoba, Canada, working on drug candidates for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). A first‑generation high school graduate from India, Sanghai moved to Canada in 2019 to honour a promise he made to his late father to “do something new.” Reflecting on his selection, he said, “I aspire to humanize science by connecting authentically with scientific leaders… to amplify scientific voices for a positive impact on human life.”
The list also includes Tarisha Gupta, a PhD scholar at IIT Gandhinagar and a Prime Minister’s Research Fellow, who earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Delhi and a master’s with a silver medal from IIT Gandhinagar. She is currently a visiting researcher at the University of Lincoln in England. Her peer, Anjali Gurajapu, a PhD candidate at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), combines a data science background from UC Berkeley with research in machine learning for organic chemistry.
Other notable Indian‑origin scientists in the 2026 cohort include Nishu Kanwa, an R&D scientist at Radboud University in the Netherlands and an alumna of Miranda House and IIT Indore, and Racchana Ramamurthy, a PhD candidate at McGill University and a graduate of Anna University, Chennai.
Peter Carlton, Future Leaders programme director at CAS, said the initiative aims to support early‑career scientists who wish to strengthen their leadership and communication skills, underscoring the global role that Indian‑origin researchers now play in shaping the future of science.