 It is now my pride and honor to introduce our next speaker, Radhika Karnan, UC Berkeley's most distinguished graduating senior and the winner of the University Medal. Radhika earned the highest distinction in economics and conservation studies and was an award-winning member of the Cal mock trial team. Having grown up both in India and Singapore, two areas plagued by drought and floods, she developed a passion for environmental justice and hopes to help indigenous groups and farmers in India. She's headed to the University of Oxford for a master's degree after this graduation. Underneath her academic success is a strong spirit driven by the sudden loss of her mother during her junior year here at Cal. Please join me in welcoming Radhika to the stage as she shares the lessons she learned from her ups and downs as a student here at Cal, but her triumphant survival and success as well. It's my great pleasure to welcome Radhika Karnan. Thank you Chancellor Dirks, or since the Chancellor also speaks my mother tongue, Mikanandri. Good morning professors, family and my friends of the class of 2015. It is an honor to stand before all of you today. When I first came to Cal, like other students, I was driven to excel, to be the best in academics and in all the other activities I was involved in. Like other students, I wanted to fulfill my sense of intellectual curiosity. Cal brings out our competitive side, our independence and the drive to push our boundaries. As we leave college, those qualities will serve as well. In fact it's why Cal graduates succeed and some will say rule the world. It wasn't until later in my undergraduate career that I realized that happiness comes not just from academic success, but also from letting people into my life and reaching out to build support systems in my community. Feeling at home was not something that I expected when I came to college 8,000 miles away from where I was born and raised, but it happened to me. During the winter of my junior year, my mom died from what started out as the flu. I could not understand how, in a span of three days, someone who I had just talked to and who had laughed at my crazy jokes could somehow cease to exist. I learned that as much as I looked for answers for what had happened, some events in life are unpredictable and don't have clear answers. Coming back to college was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I felt my mother's passing in the smallest of details, from seeing freshmen moving in and remembering how she had flown in with me to help me do the same, or something as mundane as hearing someone say they needed to call their mom. Among my group of friends, I began to feel like an outsider, someone who was incomplete. And to be honest, there are still times that I feel that way, but I had to accept that this was my new reality. I would not be able to call my mom about my bad days, my good news, or even that econometrics final which I had studied so hard for but still felt like I knew nothing. It was in one of those moments when I was emotionally at my lowest and really did not feel like facing college every single day that I understood that I had to let people in. I had been fiercely independent to the point where it was a source of pride for me not to ask for help, but I needed help. That was how I found another dimension to Cal, the people. People who I had never before approached for any kind of personal assistance helped me in such unexpected and touching ways. My professors, teaching assistants, and academic advisors opened their doors and opened their hearts, sometimes even sharing personal stories of loss with me. They helped me meet deadlines, planned my life, and sometimes just have a good cry in their office. My financial aid advisor at Cal who ensured that my budget appeal went as smoothly as it could so I didn't have to worry about financial aid while grieving my mom. My bare family. From Cal mock trial, the student advocate's office, my dance team Natia, and my friends from Corey what I spent far too much time. They gave me a sense of hope, optimism, and just made me laugh in what was such a dark time for me. Don't get me wrong, Cal is a competitive environment. But the people here pull for you no matter what, and that's what stays with you for life. The way in which we stand by each other makes for a solid foundation for becoming resilient. As new Cal graduates, we like to have a plan, but all of us are afraid that those plans might not pan out. The fact is, life is really unpredictable, which all of us will find out to varying degrees. I am not ashamed to admit that I am afraid for the future. But Cal has taught me how important it is to have people that stand by you when things don't go according to plan. And even when they do. But the support system doesn't just work one way. You have to be there for others too. Can we agree that it is important to reach out when you have the power to affect someone else's life? When we agree that as Cal graduates, we have an obligation to be there in the community for others. And I'm sure we can all agree that letting people in and reaching out can be so rewarding. Let's face it, we're going to need all the resilience and all the personal support that we can get. My fellow graduates, we are entering a world that is changing faster than ever. From climate change to population growth, but one that is also improving every day, from electric cars to better energy access. We are the generation that will have to deal with it all. So I leave you with this final thought. I urge you to think about which communities you can let in and which communities you have the power and ability to affect. So thank you for your time. I hope you have a wonderful graduation with your family and friends. And I wish you all the very best for your future. To the class of 2015, Go Bears!