MyLLife challenges the next generation to turn passion into purpose. We help college students pursue transformative summer internships in public service and policy — funding opportunities that shape careers and create lasting impact.
At the core of our flagship program is a conviction: Gen Z is ready to shape the future now, not someday. We encourage students to pursue summer work that aligns with their deepest aspirations in public service and policy. And when those opportunities are unpaid or underfunded, we step in — so passion, not finances, guides their path.
Why such an audacious bargain? Because too many young people are left to fend for themselves — working long hours to cover tuition, carrying crushing debt, and navigating exploitative practices that allow well-funded organizations and public agencies to rely on unpaid internships. These so-called apprenticeships overwhelmingly favor wealthy students, deepening the divide between the haves and the have-nots.
A society that denies equal opportunity to its youth robs itself of their full potential. Instead of cultivating innovative leaders, it risks mediocrity, stagnation, and the loss of fresh solutions born from lived experience. The result is generational inequity our world can no longer afford. Our 2025 MyLLife Scholars demonstrate what is possible when students are given the chance to do meaningful work while still in college. They have been bold — proposing new solutions, amplifying existing efforts, and proving fresh energy that can drive real change.
· One Scholar worked at a local law firm in a Pacific Island nation scarred by colonial exploitation and global conflicts it never chose. Today, that nation faces an existential threat: rising seas driven by climate change it did not cause. Central to the Scholar’s work was a stark question: what legal recourse do small nations have when treaties, often signed under duress and tilted toward powerful states, leave them with almost no avenues for justice? Answering it requires unconventional thinking and bold legal innovation.
- Another Scholar worked with a legal nonprofit, developing defense strategies and supporting safe public spaces where people could exercise their constitutionally guaranteed rights to dissent—particularly against harsh immigration policies.
- Another spent the summer with a national nonprofit, researching local candidates for public office to provide citizens with accurate, unbiased information — free of political spin and misinformation.
- Several others worked in state Attorney General offices, grappling with issues from online privacy and safety in social media, to persistent inequities in healthcare, to the failures of adoption and foster care systems that leave vulnerable children unprotected.
- The breadth and depth of their engagement this summer has been inspiring. Our goal is to continue supporting students in their pursuit of social justice, democratic resilience, economic equality, and the advancement of human dignity for all.
But programs like this don’t fund themselves. At a moment when inequity is widening and civic trust is fraying, we can’t afford to leave the next generation without the tools — and the opportunities — to lead. If we want bold ideas, fresh leadership, and solutions shaped by lived experience, then we must invest in these students now. The future won’t wait. Neither should we. Support from our readers is critical to fund this type of program and we warmly welcome your donations.
