My name is Kareena Salvi (she/her), and I am the Youth Engagement and Field Associate here at APIAVote. I oversee our youth partnerships, youth and civic engagement programming and more.
How do you support campuses and student voters?
Asian American and Pacific Islander (“AAPI”) is a huge umbrella but our communities are not a monolith – there are a multitude of student organizations and networks nationwide geared towards ethnic and pan-Asian communities. A large part of our work is building lasting partnerships across these networks and providing civic engagement resources, tools, mentorship that is unique to the needs of each community.
APIAVote partners with AAPI organizations on campuses nationwide through our Youth Ambassador Program, providing them with training, funding, and resources to create an action plan and conduct voter engagement efforts on their own campuses. Examples of creative student endeavors include “Boba and Ballots”, “Ramen and Registration”, and “Pocky at the Polls”. Additionally, we maintain lasting partnerships with regional AAPI organizations (such as MAASU, MAUVSA, ECAASU, etc) as well as national organizations such as New Voters, UNAVSA, NAPA, and more. Lastly, we established the IGNITE AANHPI Fellowship for high school students which we are happy to announce is powered by our partners New Voters.
What advice would you give someone who is interested in getting involved or supporting your work?
If you are interested in getting involved or supporting APIAVote, there are plenty of opportunities!
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- Apply for our Ambassador program to partner with us to do voter engagement work on your campus this upcoming school year.
- Check out our Youth Engagement Interest Form to keep up-to-date with news and updates about APIAVote’s events and upcoming opportunities.
- We are always looking for volunteers to help with phonebank/textbanking initiatives, hotline, and language access initiatives!
- Come to our largest event of the year on July 13th in Philadelphia, PA our 2024 Presidential Town Hall. Click here for more information!
Have you read any good books lately? What are you doing when you’re not working?
Some books I’m currently reading or re-reading are “All About Love” by Bell Hooks. A transformational book, I strongly recommend as it really helps you learn more about love, more than just a concept, but also as a verb. Bell Hooks also dives more into concepts around love and community, and the importance of understanding people. When I’m not working, I’m either dancing, choreographing, or traveling. I specifically do salsa, afro-fusion, and hip-pop.
How can readers get in touch with APIAVote if they are doing work relevant to us?
Folks can get in touch with us by contacting youth-team@apiavote.org which contacts Catherine Le and Kareena Salvi, the Youth Engagement and Field Program Associates at APIAVote. Below are our socials…
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- Social Media (@apiavote across all platforms)
- IG, Linkedin X (twitter), YouTube, Facebook
- www.apiavote.org/youth