Empowering young people to advocate for social change

UCLA third-year Fiona Lu is building pathways for young people to shape public policy through research, organizing and education. 

By Kayla McCormack | December 9, 2025

Third-year undergraduate student Fiona Lu has set her sights on social change from a young age. Triple majoring in Public Affairs, Labor Studies and Asian American Studies with a minor in community engagement and social change, Lu is already emerging as a leader in youth-driven policy advocacy. Her dedication and impact recently earned her national recognition as a Newman Civic Fellow, a distinction awarded to students who demonstrate an exceptional commitment to civic engagement.  

 

For Lu, the fellowship represents a meaningful opportunity to strengthen the work she has been doing since high school. In 2022, Lu co-wrote and proposed California Senate Bill 260 alongside fellow youth advocate Esther Lau. The bill, known as the Menstrual Equity Act of 2023, sought to expand CalWORKs benefits to cover menstrual products. 

 

While the bill did not pass, the experience highlighted a stark gap for Lu: young people were rarely involved in advocating for legislation focused on economic justice, despite being among the most affected. This realization led Lu and Lau to co-found What We All Deserve, an organization focused on training young people with the skills to advocate for economic and social change through policy and civic engagement. 

 

What We All Deserve prioritizes teaching strategy and leadership skills to young people so that they have the confidence and tools to advocate for social change in their own communities.  

 

A fellowship that elevates youth voices 

 

The Newman Civic Fellowship supports students working to address public problems in their communities, particularly those invested in sustained civic engagement. 

 

“As a youth organization in general, it’s really hard to appeal to funders and maintain their trust,” she said. “The Newman Fellowship really helped because we’re able to receive financial support, then also be connected to so many other Newman Fellows at other institutions.”  

 

Lu recently attended the 2025 Newman Civic Fellows Convening, which brings together the current Newman Fellows for discussion, collaboration and shared learning. Her time at the conference connecting with other scholars was invaluable and help to sharpen her vision for expanding What We All Deserve’s work beyond California.  

 

“It’s given me a lot of perspective in terms of how my organization can expand into other states,” said Lu. “We recently launched a fellowship with students from 10 different states, so learning how they’re organizing and building tangible partnerships has been incredibly valuable.”  

Bringing youth advocacy to the classroom 

 

This winter, Lu is translating her organizing experience into the classroom as she prepares to teach a course through Undergraduate Student Initiated Education, offered through UCLA’s Honors Programs. Working with Laura Wray-Lake, professor of social welfare in the Luskin School of Public Affairs, as her faculty mentor for the course has been particularly meaningful.  

 

“I found out about my faculty mentor through Public Affairs, and a lot of the research she does aligns with my own lived experience,” said Lu. “It was so legitimizing to learn that someone studies things like imposter syndrome or navigating policy as a young person – things I think about all the time.”  

 

The course will explore youth civic engagement, examining both formal structures such as youth advisory councils and programs like AmeriCorps, as well as grassroots, youth-created opportunities.  

 

“I’m really excited to explore this particular age group,” said Lu. “As a young person, you have so many opportunities coming at you, but it’s also the pivotal moment to develop civic identity.” 

 

Lu wants her students to imagine themselves not as future policy leaders, but as current ones.  

 

“I want to give them a space to reimagine what it would be like to be truly involved,” she said. “Sometimes students think they need a master’s degree before they can pursue a policy idea they had for class. I want them to see what’s possible now, based on what other young people have already done.” 

 

Both Lu’s academic work and her advocacy efforts aim to create pathways for young people to shape policy, and ultimately the systems they live in. 

 

This year, Lu is conducting research through the Astin Community Engaged Scholar program. She’ll be working alongside Changeist, an organization which aims to get middle and high schoolers involved in civic engagement.  

 

“I feel really understood within the realms of academia and advocacy,” said Lu. “And I want young people to feel the same, to know they belong in these spaces and that their contributions matter.” 

 

Learn more about the Center for Community Engagement’s work.