OUR TEAM

Saanvi Arora (she/her) is an avid mental and reproductive health activist and a third year student at UC Berkeley. In her junior year of high school, she published her own research exploring contemporary networking systems as solutions to public health disparities in the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Journal Pulse and presented this research at the Sino-US HSME in 2019. She’s continued her work to focus specifically on vaccine access and improving means for survivors of sexual violence to seek legal recourse, specifically with regards to policy designed to uplift young people of color.

Isaac Alpert (he/him) is a college sophomore in Los Angeles, California. He first got involved in local campaigning during his time in high school. After high school, he joined the Youth Power Project as a Civic Engagement Policy Specialist and soon made his way in the Operations team where he currently oversees the organization's outreach, communications, and finance teams. Isaac has also interned on a congressional campaign in the LA area, in addition to interning with his local State Assembly member. 

Brayden Karpinski (he/him) serves as the Co-Director of Operations at the Youth Power Project, a position he has held since August 2023. A native of New Jersey, he is currently pursuing a degree in International Relations and Finance at the University of St Andrews. Politically and civically engaged since the 2020 election, Brayden has held various roles on political campaigns and within nonprofit organizations. He is also the co-founder of REAL Action Inc. and the Iron Girl Project. Outside of his academic and nonprofit endeavors, Brayden works at a pizzeria and enjoys working on vehicles.

Alex Edgar (he/him) is a recent UC Berkeley graduate who approaches systems of higher education, workforce, and government with the intent of elevating and activating youth voices and engagement in order to build a society that is more responsive to the needs of his generation. Outside of YPP, Alex is Youth Engagement Manager at Made By Us, where he leads the national nonprofit’s Youth250 campaign, developing programming and outreach in preparation for the launch of their National Youth Bureau, an advisory group made up of 100 paid 18 to 30 year old advisors.

Carisma (she/her) is a third-year undergraduate at the University of California, Berkeley studying Political Science and Data Science. She currently works as a staff member for an introductory data science class at UC Berkeley where she aims to encourage students from underrepresented backgrounds to enter and lead in STEM spaces. In the future, Carisma aims to influence technology policy and work in technological development on the international level. In her free time, Carisma enjoys going on runs and exploring new restaurants.

Cady Chen (she/her) is a third year undergraduate studying neuroscience and public health at Columbia University and originally from the Bay Area! Her advocacy started in high school, during which she served as the Director of Innovation and Strategy at Generation Up and worked to uplift youth voices into education policy conversations that directly impacted them. As a Mental Health Co-Lead at the Youth Power Project, she is committed to uplifting and centering lived youth narratives to build sustainable, accessible, and empathetic systems of mental health support. In her free time, she loves petting dogs, drinking strawberry matcha lattes, and sketching urban scenes!

Dzian Tran (she/her) is from Los Angeles, CA and an English Literature student at UC Berkeley hoping to one day be an international human rights attorney. She has been YPP’s Communications Director since August 2023 and is particularly passionate about uplifting youth voices in government. Aside from her passion for youth advocacy—specializing in grassroots organizing—she loves to read poetry, sing, and arrange vocal compositions on Logic Pro.

My name is Elena Khudaverdyan (she/her), and I am from Glendale, California. I am entering my senior year at Hoover High School, and I am excited to pursue a major in political science. My passion for policy-making led me to join the Youth Power Project, where I have served as the Director of Outreach since January of 2024. Besides my involvement with YPP, I have interned at a law firm and with State Senator Josh Becker, where I learned valuable experience in the field. In my free time, I enjoy playing tennis and being a movie critic.

My name is Alex Muradian (he/him), and I live in Glendale, California. In YPP I am the Co-Director of Outreach, in which our job is to find people who are interested in our organization and building it up through advertising. My hobbies include watching movies, listening to music, and swimming.

Sanya Dhama (she/her/hers) is a Pitzer College graduate in a joint medical degree program, studying Human Biology and Data Science.  As an executive board of Pitzer's Student Senate, she worked closely with the Title IX office on legislation to better trainings and resources for students of various ethnic and cultural backgrounds, sexual orientation and gender identities, socioeconomic statuses, and abilities as an extension of her efforts in the drafting of the language for the now chaptered Assembly Bill 2683.  She is a published researcher in The Lancet and Clinics and Practice in the field of immunology and public health with an emphasis in adolescent wellbeing.  Through forwarding health autonomy and access, she hopes to empower people to care for themselves and their communities.

Akul Gupta (he/him) is an undergraduate student at the University of South Florida pursuing a degree in Biomedical Sciences. Akul has co-authored several publications, including a paper on inflammatory mechanisms in heart failure published in the American Journal of Physiology. Akul has also presented research at major conferences like the ACC Asia 2023. Beyond research, Akul actively participates in healthcare outreach locally and globally. He co-founded the organization CardiacLife Foundation which provides cardiac care to underserved regions of Vietnam. Akul is a National Youth Advisory Board Member for Young Invincibles and Civic Leaders Fellow from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute. Akul aims to pursue a career where he can address health disparities and improve outcomes for vulnerable populations.