The Lisa Walker Award allowed me to attend two virtual conferences, ACS Meetings & Expos and ACS Colloid and Surface Science Symposium in 2021. I was awarded in 2019, but because of the COVID–19 pandemic, my conferences were postponed for one year. During this difficult time, thanks to the Lisa Walker Award, I was able to present my work on liquid crystal sensors for dynamic reaction pathways and active liquid crystal droplets that can both self–propelling and
achieve functions, where I received a lot of interest from the audiences. I also attended the talks presented by top academic researchers and industrial leaders in chemistry, chemical engineering and biochemistry. These conferences were great professional development opportunities for me. The ideas inspired me not only on active materials and sensors that I am currently working on but also on directions I can possibly pursue my postdoc research.