Foster Care Reimagined: How Two Sisters Are Changing the Lives of L.A. Youth

Having Coco, 2, join their family inspired sisters Layla, 16, and Delara, 17, to start Coco’s Angels. The organization helps kids in foster care across L.A., through tutoring services, education funding and donation drives.

Layla and Delara began their first fundraiser with GoFundMe in 2020 raising over $60,000 and allowing them to order over 600 personalized holiday gifts for foster care kids. Since December 2020, the girls have raised over $125,000.

The Future is Ms.: Tennessee Teens Advocate for Abortion Rights in a Red State

Alyson Nordstrom, 17, knew that the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade would result in the girls and women of her community losing their rights to obtain an abortion entirely. Despite the challenges of fighting for a blue issue in a red state, Nordstrom helped form Teens for Reproductive Rights, a coalition of teens who organize fundraisers for abortion care, post infographics about current abortion restrictions in Tennessee and encourage teenagers to vote.

Young Women Vow to Carry the Equal Rights Amendment Across the Finish Line

After realizing that gender equality wasn’t a right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, Rosie Couture and her friend Belan Yeshigeta founded Generation Ratify, an organization dedicated to adding the ERA to the Constitution. Other women-led organizations, such as The Feminist Front and The Ruth Project, joined the fight.

“Advocating for the ERA means advocating for a fight that began with many of our grandmothers.”

Baltimore Teens Fought To Provide Communities With Fast and Reliable Internet

When school went online during COVID lockdowns, Kimberly Vasquez’s unreliable WiFi started to hinder her schoolwork. Her grade point average dropped but her family could only afford the low-cost plan that wasn’t suitable for remote learning. 

Vasquez, joined by Yashira Valenzuela and Aliyah Abid, organized to petition Comcast to make their plans faster and more economical for low-income families. After rallying at Comcast headquarters, the city’s largest provider made the most affordable option for internet run at twice the speed. 

Teenagers on State Boards of Education—Why Including the Voices of Young Women Is Essential

Eleni Livingston and Rana Banankhah, both 17 years old, are voting members of their states’ board of education. They help decide high school graduation requirements, determine teacher qualifications and develop state student assessments. They also bridge the gender gap in education leadership—since women make up only 31 percent of school district chiefs. Their experiences show the importance of student voices in policymaking.

“On the board it can be intimidating to go in, as a young woman, as a teenager, into an environment like that and jump right in and start advocating for my peers,” Livingston said.

“To be treated like an adult, even though I can’t even vote for [U.S.] president, was really eye-opening,” Banankhah said.