Blue Leaf Labs
About

About Blue Leaf Labs

Blue Leaf Labs is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded and run by Rohan Agarwal. It exists to advance climate systems research and open scientific education, and to put that work to public use.

Rohan Agarwal, founder of Blue Leaf Labs

I'm Rohan Agarwal, a researcher, teacher, and performer, and a dual-enrolled sophomore at Monta Vista High School and De Anza College in Cupertino, CA.

I believe that true change happens only when engineering innovation becomes an economic driver. I founded Blue Leaf Labs to explore this space, focusing on energy, climate, and the use of insightful data to drive real-world action. My work is hands-on and transparent: I design prototypes, test them rigorously, and share my methods openly so others can build on what I've learned. Collaboration is integral to this process, and I enjoy working with fellow researchers, educators, and community groups to validate and share results.

Researcher

My current work searches for solutions to environmental challenges that are feasible from an engineering standpoint and drive economic self-interest:

  • Blue Energy: building and testing benchtop stacks for osmotic power (blue energy), with a focus on load-sweep instrumentation and real-world economic feasibility.
  • Decision Tools: turning messy data into clear, actionable insights through single-metric visualizations and lightweight dashboards.

Teacher

I'm passionate about making complex ideas accessible. My teaching with Dynamic Teaching for the City of Cupertino ranges from the school-year Advanced Topics in Mathematics to custom-crafted summer programs in environmental engineering and scientific inquiry. Working with students from fifth to twelfth grade, I invest a lot of time designing materials that bring abstract concepts to life with clear examples, cheat-sheets, and small tools they can use long after class ends. I'm currently designing an environmental awareness course for Summer 2026.

Performer

Outside of engineering, I'm a musician. I play Hindustani classical tabla and Western violin, and I've been singing for over a decade. My fascination with rhythm, signal, and structure in music often directly informs how I approach sensors and data in the lab. You can find some of my latest compositions on Instagram and YouTube.