Meet the team

Rahem Hamid is a co-founder of the National Geography Bee and a Massachusetts state finalist in the 2017 National Geographic Bee. He is a 2025 graduate of Harvard College, where he majored in history and was an executive at The Harvard Crimson. He lives in the Boston area. You can reach out at rahem@nationalgeobee.org.

Pranay Varada is a co-founder of the National Geography Bee and the 2017 National Geographic GeoBee champion. He is a 2025 graduate of Harvard College, where he majored in statistics and government and was president of the Harvard Open Data Project. He lives in Washington, DC. You can reach out at pranay@nationalgeobee.org.

Samvrit Rao is the Sponsorships Lead of the National Geography Bee and the winner of the 2019 International Geography Bee. He is currently a student at Columbia University, where he is majoring in neuroscience and computer science. In his free time, Samvrit enjoys performing with Columbia Bhangra and volunteering at his local hospital. He currently resides in New York City. You can reach out at sam@nationalgeobee.org.