Context 2023

Had you ever experienced pressure to diminish or compartmentalize your commitment to social change as you considered various career opportunities? There were many examples of leaders and advocates who built vibrant careers that centralized their passion for social justice across various roles and settings. Whether attendees identified as new professionals, individuals making a career pivot or those advancing to senior leadership roles, they were invited to learn with us.

UCLA alumni on the Community Coalition senior leadership team described the insights they gained over time, training activists and organizers to build power and engage in policy change among multiple generations of Black, brown, Indigenous and people of color in South Los Angeles. The event was hosted in a hybrid format, both live at Community Coalition and online via Zoom.

The UCLA Alumni Changemakers Featured Speakers 2023 event, “Maintaining the Spark: Committing to Social Justice Through Various Career and Life Stages,” took the Changemakers series into the community of South Los Angeles and centralized the work of senior leaders at Community Coalition. This organization had worked for 30 years “to help transform the social and economic conditions in South L.A. that foster addiction, crime, violence and poverty by building a community institution that involves thousands in creating, influencing and changing public policy.”

Highlighting the voices of these Bruins was intentional as the event sought to equip attendees with strategies and approaches for exploring the dynamic intersections between personal passion and career choice. Regardless of one’s career or life stage, it was possible to find ways to ground everyday work in one’s deepest passion.

UCLA Alumni Association programs and services are made possible by Bruins like you. To ensure the future of signature events like this, attendees were encouraged to consider making a gift.