The Youth Leadership Institute (yli) has sparked the leadership of over 100,000 young people to solve pressing social issues and serve communities throughout California in the Eastern Coachella Valley, Long Beach, Fresno, Madera, Merced, San Mateo, San Francisco and Marin.

To date, yli young people have passed over 135 policy wins through holistic leadership development, youth-led action research, storytelling and campaigns in the areas of our Justice Platforms: Economic Justice, Education Justice, Environmental Justice, Gender Justice, Health Justice and Racial Justice.

The HOPE (Healthy Online Platforms for Everyone) Coalition, is one of yli’s first statewide programs and currently works with over 40 young people to make social media healthier for teens, and everyone, through narrative and policy change. Our work includes:

• Surveying youth on the impact of ad exposure on social media,
• Advocating for stronger healthy online policies,
• Creating a model policy that lays out safety recommendations for healthy online environment, 
• Capacity-building on mental health, substance use, and more.