Michaella Atienza is a third-year plant biologist studying at the University of Calgary and works with the iGEM Calgary team. She decided to pursue plant biology out of interest in complex plant-derived compounds which are heavily used in nutraceuticals and clinical experiments. Outside of the laboratory and her classes, Micha likes to play the ukulele, watch YouTube videos, and explore cafés.

She became a mentor to share her knowledge from performing research in synthetic biology and promote its integration in high schools. Additionally, she wants to volunteer with geekStarter as a way of paying it forward for their support for iGEM Calgary