Joleen Bakalova is a youth activist whose life mission is to incite tangible change for underrepresented communities around the world. Since the age of fourteen, she has been an elected official within the American political system, focusing on the engagement of youth towards promoting systemic change and driving government policy adjacent to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Currently, she serves as the youngest-ever statewide political party leader in California, the largest state in America. She has helped pass legislation in the US Congress taking action in promoting human rights in China and registered thousands of young people to vote in key elections, exciting them to amplify their voices in their country as well as in the world. Outside of promoting civic engagement in her nation, she serves as an intern for UN Women, where she helps develop and advance key campaigns, like Generation Equality and Safe Cities, as well as moderate official events, like the International Day of the Girl. With Columbia University, she has performed cross-cultural research of young people’s view on government surveillance in China and the United States. Joleen also produces her own ethnography research podcast, which promotes a more understanding global society by educating a new generation on regional history and conflict through the lens of family history. With listeners from around the world, she has conducted dozens of interviews with youth from Palestine, Belarus, the Roma community, and more.