Simultaneous to her solo exhibition Rhizophora, Rao showed her work Dispersal (2022), which had begun in New York City as a way to share a tactile engagement with objects in an intimate setting. Dispersal stems from Rao’s research into the migration and adaptability of mangroves before they take root in a location. The soap objects are made to resemble parts of the mangrove plant. The traveling was meant to echo the migration of mangrove propagules which float across vast distances before eventually taking root. Interested parties were encouraged to sign up. Locations were chosen in collaboration between the viewer and the artist.

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In 2012, a biosurfactant-producing bacteria was discovered in mangrove sediment that was contaminated by oil pollution. These bacteria biodegrade the pollutants into non-toxic biosurfactants-suggesting that mangroves have begun adapting to adverse environmental conditions. Soap is a surfactant.