Is it correct to use "...and as a result,..." to link two independent clauses? Is the comma after "result" necessary?

I ran into this sentence:

I grew up in a home with two different cultures and as a result, I got to experience firsthand how misunderstandings evolve due to not understanding each other's culture.

These are two independent clauses while the second has an introductory clause. Is that actually possible and do you have to use the comma after "result" then??

Solution 1:

The usage you have shown is incorrect.

Anything parenthetical, i.e. anything that can be optionally dropped, needs to be surrounded by commas. In this case there should be a comma after the "and" in order to surround "as a result". British and American comma usage can vary but this is one thing these two cultures are united on.