Member Spotlight - Mandy Meindersma

Meet Mandy Meindersma, a “software by day, hardware by night” maker whose path to robotics started in an unlikely place: a rural high school shop class where a welding teacher taught soldering instead of code. Canadian-born and University of Alberta–trained, she’s now a New York–based web developer with a robotics streak, happiest when Java, Python, and a breadboard are all within reach.

In this interview, she shares the joy of side projects like wiring a rotary phone to place calls on a smartphone and crafting infrared-controlled LED bracelets inspired by the Eras Tour as well as her plan to step fully into robotics. You’ll also hear how she’s paying it forward, including her upcoming “Making our young roboticists” session at Tech Bash, where kids will build paper circuits and their first “robots.” Read more for a candid, hands-on perspective on bridging software and hardware while lighting the way for the next generation.

Interview with Mandy Meindersma

What is your background?
I like to say I am software by day and hardware by night :P I currently work as a web dev and I have worked a lot of software jobs but all my side projects are either hardware or robotics. My university courses were all about robotics. I eventually want to transition into the robotics world! I am Canadian, I got my degree from University of Alberta and now I am working in New York! I love it! Java and Python are my fave.

How did you get into robotics?
My high school had a robotics class! My rural high school of all places. It was the welding teacher who had a knack for soldering so it had almost no programming but it was so so so so fun. My dad taught me how to solder!

What do you currently do in robotics?
Random hardware side projects! I hooked a rotary phone up to my cell phone so you could dial on the rotary phone and it would call on my cell phone! I am currently trying to create a replica of the Taylor Swift Era’s Tour bracelets where you can use infrared light to get them to change colours and make cool shapes on the crowd!

Describe something that you do (or would like to do) to help support younger women in robotics?
I am speaking at Tech Bash in November! It is a family friendly conference and I have a whole session called “Making our young roboticist’s” where I am going to teach the kidlets about making paper circuits and creating a “robot”. So excited!