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Tucson Youth & Peace
A year-long peace leadership program for youth and young adults ages 12-24
15th Annual Youth and Peace Conference
February 2027
Pima Community College West
YOUTH LEADERSHIP TEAM
Meet the 2025/2026 Expanded Youth Leadership Team
This year, for the first time ever, Tucson Youth and Peace and its Youth Leadership Team (YLT) reached out to several other youth leadership groups in the Tucson community and invited them to join in an "Expanded Youth Leadership Team" to assist in providing youth leadership oversight for the 14th Annual YPC. The Expanded YLT also took responsibility for facilitating the Opening & Closing Ceremonies, and creating focus questions for the Dialogue Circles conducted during the 14th Annual YPC. The Expanded YLC selected the title for the conference “Protecting Our Classmates: Addressing Safety, Mental Health & Equity in Schools."
2025/2026 Expanded Youth Leadership Team Members
Naeva Ortega - YLT/Tucson Youth & Peace
Anmarie Rivera - YLT/Tucson Youth & Peace
Julian Avilez - YLT/Tucson Youth & Peace
Chelsea Lopez - YLT/Tucson Youth & Peace
Kade Linaman - YLT/Tucson Youth & Peace
Evie Leung - Integrative Touch Healing Center
Grace Brady - Integrative Touch Healing Center
Keona Rose - Youth Leadership Table/Cradle to Career
Gabe Mendoza - Youth Leadership Table/Cradle to Career
Samuel Bermudez - Youth Leadership Table/Cradle to Career
Ana Fabiana Fernandez - Youth Leadership Table/Cradle to Career
Marwa Nazir - Youth Leadership Table/Cradle to Career
Ivan Becerril - TYP Program Coordinator
Finley Simpson - TYP Intern
Meet the 2024 YPC Youth Team
The 2024 YPC Youth Leadership Team selected the title for the conference “Creating Safe Spaces in Our Community: Raising Awareness & Finding Resources.”
2024 Youth Leadership Team Members
Angelica (Yuki) Sekavec - Insight Academy Online School
Finley Simpson - Canyon del Oro High School
Julian Avilez - BASIS Tucson North
Lucia Galvan - BASIS Tucson North
Nikita Le - BASIS Tucson North
Roberto Campbell - University High School
Sabine Barbour - BASIS Tucson North
Sasha Rosales Gallagher - City High School
William Yeah-Baxter - BASIS Tucson North
Zamaya Campbell - Rincon High School
Meet the 2023 YPC Youth Team
The 2023 YPC Youth Leadership Team selected the title for the conference “Empathy: The Key to Humanizing & Uniting Our Communities.”
2023 Youth Leadership Team Members
Andrea Esmeralda Hernandez - 2023 graduate from Rio Rico High School, University of Arizona
Bleu Moon - City High School
Camila L. Fonseca - Rio Rico High School
Fatima Barry - BASIS Tucson North
Simar Sehgal - BASIS Oro Valley
Mayrim Juarez Navarro - Sunnyside High School
Naomi Montgomery - 2023 graduate from City High School
Meet the 2022 YPC Youth Team
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The 2022 YPC Youth Leadership Team selected the title for the conference “Cultivating a Nourishing Relationship with the Inner YOU.” The team planned and led the Opening & Closing Ceremonies at the 11th Annual Youth & Peace Conference.
2022 YPC Youth Team Members
Alberto Salazar - Tucson High Magnet School
Andrea Esmeralda Hernandez Pina - Rio Rico High School
Bryan Martinez - Desert View High School
Elayna Mack - Empire High School
Jazmine Arvizu - Pueblo High School
Leilani Figuero - Roskruge High School
Lianna Tarazon - Wakefield High School
Maizie Dunlap - Southern Arizona Aids Foundation (SAAF)
Mazalina Marshall - Northern Arizona University
Naomi Montgomery -City High School
Meet the 2021 YPC Youth Team
Meet the members of the 2021 YPC Youth Leadership Team who selected the title for the conference “Fostering Equitable Education by Prioritizing Safe & Diverse Dialogue” and planned and led the Opening & Closing Ceremonies at the 10th Annual Youth & Peace Conference to highlight this title.
Meet the 2020 YPC Youth Team
Meet the members of the 2020 YPC Youth Leadership Team who selected the title for the conference “Cultivating Safer Communities by Centering Women of Color” and planned and led the Opening & Closing Ceremonies at the 9th Annual Youth & Peace Conference to highlight this title.
Mazalina Marshall (she/her)
Empire High School
Zodiac: Virgo
Song: Just Imagine It By MKTO
My name is Mazalina Marshall and I use pronouns she/her/hers. I am currently a sophomore at Empire High School. I joined the Youth Planning Committee after hearing about it from my Coordinator of the Youth Advisory Council in Tucson. I had heard of the Youth and Peace Conference before, but didn't really know what it was all about. After looking through the website, I realized that I could not pass up an opportunity to be a part of it. I am so lucky to be a part of this program and look forward to the conference!
Izabela Lopez (she/her)
Tucson High School
Zodiac: Sagittarius
Song: Dynamite by BTS
My name is Izabela Lopez. I'm 17 years old and I attend Tucson High Magnet School. I enjoy dance, videography, and a variety of global music. Advocacy is one of my many purposes and the Youth and Peace Conference has granted me the opportunity to be a voice. I hope I can one day become someone who is positively influential to others.
Melanie Fabian (she/her)
Walden Grove High School
Zodiac: Libra
Song: Oceans By Seafret
Hi I am Melanie Fabian! My favorite colors are blues and yellows. My favorite song is Oceans by Seafret. I am a junior in high school, and this year I got the opportunity to to be a part of the Youth Leadership Team for the 2020 Youth Peace Conference. All of us really enjoyed planning this conference, and even though we can't be together for it, I hope you enjoy the conference!
Yazmine Ramirez (she/her)
Zodiac: Scorpio
Song: Smells Like Teen Spirit By Nirvana
My name is Yazmin Ramirez, I'm 16 years old, and I'm a Junior at Pueblo High School. I love to listen to music, edit videos, and look at the stars at night. I wanted to be a part of the Youth and Peace Conference because it sounded like a great opportunity to help make a difference. Our conference focuses on women of color and I'm hoping that it'll empower those in our community and spread awareness.
Gisselle Ramirez (she/her)
Zodiac: Virgo
Pueblo High School
Song: To binge By Gorillaz
My name is Gisselle Ramirez, I am 17 years old and a junior at Pueblo High School. In my free time I like to draw, paint, and play guitar and piano. I decided to join the YPC Youth Leadership team because I was excited to see that this year, we would be centering women of color. It’s so important to educate youth about the topics we will be discussing at the conference, and I’m so happy to have been able to take part in it!
Kevin King (he/him)
Walden Grove High School
Zodiac: Libra
Song: Empire Ants By Gorillaz
I’m Kevin King. In my free time I like to listen to music and play guitar. I joined YPC because I wanted to be more in my community and spread positivity.
Emily Morel (she/her/ella)
University of Arizona
Zodiac: Virgo
Song: The Roof By Mariah Carey Ft. Mobb Deep
This conference is important to me because I want to help teach other youth about the importance of being a caring community member.
Ethan Itule (he/him)
Zodiac: Scorpio
Song: Head over Heels By Loveleo
Hello everyone! I am Ethan Itule and I am 16 years old. I attend Walden Grove High School and I absolutely love soccer and football as well as traveling with my friends. The reason I joined the YPC was because I believed that everyone has such an empowering voice and imagination and I never want anyone to be left unheard or ignored. I also love meeting new people and talking in front of people and to people. So if any of y’all want to talk just hit me up!
Carlos Laphond (he/him)
Pueblo High School
Song: Moon Undah Water By Puma Blue
My name is Carlos Laphond. I am 17 years old and I am currently a Junior at Pueblo High School. I am a passionate musician and multi-instrumentalist, as well as a fiction writer. I chose to join the YPC Leadership Team to assist my peers and friends in creating an informative and enjoyable conference during these times of uncertainty. It is vital for everyone - especially our youth - to uncover and acknowledge the hardships that our community suffers from so we can rebuild them into prospering places for all to live and socialize in.
Jesus Rodriguez (he/him)
Pueblo High School
Zodiac: Sagittarius
Song: Drunk Drivers/Killer Whales By Car Seat Headrest
My name is Jesus Rodriguez, I'm 16 and I go to Pueblo High School. I like listening to music, working out, trying out new things and learning. I joined the Youth and Peace Conference because I began to learn more on subjects that we as a community need to be educated on, and i wanted to do more and I just so happened to come across YPC!
Diane Gonzalez (she/her)
Walden Grove High School
Zodiac: Taurus
Song: Mi Persona Favorita By Rio Roma
Hi, I’m Diane and I absolutely so excited to see you all partake in a journey of growing and learning through this conference! Through this conference I learned it’s never too ate to educate yourself and grow as a person to better your community and I you can find this self-discovery too!