Generation Change with Leo Finelli

On this month's episode, Leo meets Elijah Lee, a 16-year-old student, community activist, and national advocate for children from Richmond, Virginia. Elijah tells about his work with the Virginia State Legislature, his appearances on the Kelly Clarkson Show, his friendship with one of our previous guests, and so much more!

Follow Elijah on Instagram: @elijah_4justice_lee

Check out Elijah's official website: https://incredibleelijah.com/

Leo meets Keanu Arpels-Josiah, one of the lead organizers behind last year's March to End Fossil Fuels in New York City. Keanu also serves on the Electoral and Legislative teams of Sunrise Movement NYC, and helps coordinate and organize around local policy and legislative campaigns as a policy lead for Fridays for Future. Leo talks with Keanu about striking outside City Hall, organizing the March to End Fossil Fuels, and going to COP28 in Dubai.

Follow Keanu on Instagram: @keanu.8064

Leo chats with Ava Pallotta, a student activist at Harvard College, co-chair of the Harvard Votes Challenge, and deputy political director for Voters of Tomorrow. Ava shares how she got started, how she organized student protests and other events at Harvard, and how she takes care of herself.

Follow Ava on Instagram: @avapallotta

Leo interviews Bayly Hoehne, a 16 year old Gen Z political strategist from Connecticut. Bayly and Leo chat about getting into politics early on, Bayly's leadership roles, and her enthusiasm for Taylor Swift.

Follow Bayly on Instagram: @baylyhoehne

Leo meets Marianna Pecora, a 20 year old youth activist and college sophomore from Southern California who's currently studying political communications at George Washington University in Washington, DC. Marianna and Leo talk about growing up near the US-Mexico border, why she chose GWU, and what she's been up to in our nation's capital.

Follow Marianna on Instagram: @marianna.pecora

We begin Season 4 of the Generation Change with Leo Finelli Podcast with Leo and Elijah Pelton.

Elijah got his start in the gun violence prevention movement after the Parkland shooting. At his high school, Elijah started chapters of Students Demand Action and March For Our Lives, which held multiple events including 2 school walkouts, and gave presentations to both the school board and the city council. Elijah now attends Johnson and Wales University, where he studies hospitality management.

Elijah talks about growing up near Washington, DC, organizing school walkouts against gun violence, and volunteering as a chef with World Central Kitchen.

Leo meets Jennalynn Fung, a PharmD candidate, journalist, and photographer based in Queens, NY. Jennalynn has written and advocated for climate justice, Asian American culture, the LGBT+ community, and health, and has become known for their music journalism. As they enter the last couple years of pharmacy school, Jennalynn is interested in continuing their environmental advocacy work, with a focus on the sociocultural and environmental factors that impact public health and access to care.

Follow Jennalynn on Instagram: @jennuinn.

On this episode Leo meets Anna Johnson, a special ed teacher and gun violence prevention advocate from Raleigh, NC. Leo and Anna talk about going to the same college (at different times), Anna's time on the Change the Ref tour, her favorite TV shows, and more.

You can follow Anna on Instagram @annagreenj. Anna is also the social media manager for Newtown Action Alliance and Change the Ref.

Leo meets and talks with Shoshanna "Shoshie" Hemley, a rising junior and political science major at Williams College. She grew up mostly in Iowa, but she has lived in Manila, Singapore, and France, all of which were experiences that greatly impacted her passion for global justice. Outside of the classroom, Shoshie runs her college mock trial team, is on the board of her student-run theater group, has performed in multiple shows a semester, is part of an a capella group, is on her elected student government, and serves as a tour guide. She has always been passionate about social justice and she hopes to go to law school after graduating from Williams.

Follow Shoshie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shoshie.hemley/

In this episode, Leo takes you to Hollywood this month for an interview with Zoey Luna. Zoey is a girl with so much on her plate and a story to tell. She’s a Latina transgender actress, advocate, and personality. She's made appearances in films and tv shows such as "Dear Evan Hansen", and "Pose", plus she had her first break at only 16 years old in Rosario Dawson's directorial debut "Boundless". Zoey cemented her position in this career by landing one of the four lead roles in Blumhouse & Sony's "The Craft Legacy". Zoey and I talked about her acting career, the challenges she’s faced, and what she’d like to see in TV and movies.