Democracy Camp Berkeley

Katie DaQuino

Class of 2023
2023 Cal-in-Sacramento
2023 Jo Freeman Women in Politics Fellow
2022 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Katie DaQuino is a fourth year student studying Political Science, with minors in Public Policy and Interdisciplinary Human Rights Studies. She is the president of Cal Habitat for Humanity, a community service club that aims to give students opportunities to volunteer in the local community. The club is focused on affordable housing and during her time as president she has worked to expand the advocacy branch of the club. Katie is also an editor for the Undergraduate Public Policy Review Journal, where she published an article about housing policies in California.

She also is
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Juan Pablo Blanco

Class of 2024
2024 Cal-in-Sacramento
2024 Democracy Camp in Berkeley
2024 Diversity & Entrepreneurship Fellow

Raised in a modest family of five, Juan Pablo Blanco is passionate about some of the most pressing issues confronting working-class Californians. As a senior studying political science at UC Berkeley, Juan Pablo is mental health advocate who recognizes the importance of empowering communities for students in college. At UC Berkeley, Juan Pablo founded Unbox’d, a mental health awareness organization that offers students mindfulness resources.

Juan Pablo plans to attend law school, work in-house counsel, and start an immigration law firm. Coming from an immigrant...

Jennifer Ramirez

Class of 2024
2024 Percy Undergraduate Grant
2023 Ken Burt Fellow
2023 Cal-in-Sacramento
2022 Washington Fellowship
2022 Democracy Camp in DC Student Co-Director
2022 Democracy Camp in DC
2022 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Jennifer Ramirez is a first-generation Latina studying Economics and Public Policy at UC Berkeley from the Bay Area. Growing up in a mixed-status household, she experienced first-hand the hardships Latinx immigrant families faced, such as the struggle to assimilate, obtain basic needs, and become financially stable. The systematic barriers that limit the upward mobility of historically marginalized communities propelled her to become an advocate in her local community, and pursue a career in public service. After being selected to attend Harvard Kennedy...

Peter Coe

Class of 2022
2021 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Peter Coe is a third-year undergraduate studying Political Science and Public Policy at UC Berkeley. He is currently rebuilding the UC Berkeley SunRise Movement Club to leverage membership to motivate local and national politicians to champion environmental policies. The Sunrise movement is a "movement of young people to stop climate change and create millions of good jobs" by fighting for the Green New Deal. As a member of the Partners in Health Engage advocacy team, Peter advocates for policies (such as Medicare for All) to reduce health inequity. On a state level, Peter wants to...

Randy Cantz

Class of 2021
2020 Democracy Camp

Randy Cantz is a senior at UC Berkeley pursuing a degree in History and a minor in Public Policy. He is focused on gaining critical insights into the measures necessary to institute salient and long-lasting policies at state and national levels. An active member of his school’s community, Randy is President of Phi Alpha Theta, UC Berkeley’s history honor society, a Senior Associate for the Chief Legal Officer in the ASUC’s Office of Legal Affairs, and Advocacy Director of Berkeley Hillel’s Challah for Hunger chapter. Randy’s goal is to ultimately pursue a career centered on...

2021 Democracy Camp Journal

March 31, 2021
Monday, March 22nd, 2021 Lisa García Bedolla, Vice Provost for Graduate Studies & Dean of the Graduate Division

Dr. Garcia Bedolla’s background and knowledge about career paths for public service were incredibly inspiring. Garcia Bedolla grew up in Los Angeles, as the daughter of Cuban immigrants. Even though her dad wanted her to be a lawyer, she decided to pursue a Ph.D. in Latin American History from Yale University. She was especially motivated to pursue a Ph.D. because there were very few people of Latin American descent teaching Latin American History. Garcia Bedolla has...

Ariana Kretz

Class of 2024
2024 John Gardner Fellowship
2023 Schaeffer Fellowship
2023 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

As a queer and disabled woman, Ariana Kretz hopes that by pursuing a placement in environmental justice, she can create systems that better uplift those of marginalized identities while protecting the planet. Her particular policy interests include public transit and the intersection between Indigenous sovereignty and environmental issues.

At UC Berkeley, she majored in History with double minors in Public Policy and Conservation and Resource Studies. Her honor’s thesis focused on how Native American parents advocated for their children who...

Daira Rivera

Class of 2024
2023 Democracy Camp in Berkeley Student Director
2023 Democracy Camp in Berkeley
2022 Schaeffer Fellowship
2022 Democracy Camp in Berkeley
Placement: Placement Location:

Daira grew up in Hayward California and her parents are from Nayarit Mexico. She is currently a senior attending UC Berkeley majoring in Political Science with a minor in public policy. Her career is geared towards being a civil rights attorney and one day working in public policy. Throughout her upbringing, she became aware of the systematic failures that affect low-income POC and wants to dedicate her career to aid the effort in changing them. She ultimately wants a career in public service that will fulfill her...

Harold Morales-Navas

Class of 2027
2024 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Harold Morales-Navas (he/him)

As the child of immigrants from Central America, Harold Morales-Navas is a young and enthusiastic character who is currently a freshman at UC Berkeley. As a double major in media studies and sociology, Harold aims to pursue a difference in the world by participating in civil activism and public engagement. Harold has experience leading groups in debates and civil discourses, and has worked with organizations such as the ACLU and USC Anneberg.

Erkki Forster

Class of 2025
2024 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Erkki Forster (he/him)

Erkki Forster was born in Berlin, raised in Zurich and Tokyo, and moved to Los Angeles as a teenager in 2016. It was during this transformative journey that his insatiable curiosity for global affairs and politics drove him to immerse himself in international media, sparking his love for journalism. In high school, he joined the student-run newspaper, The Samohi, which he eventually came to run as editor-in-chief. At UC Berkeley, Erkki majors in global studies and is currently the deputy editor of the opinion section at The Daily Californian...