Washington, July 29: California Governor Gavin Newsom has appointed two Indian-American community leaders Raj Bhutoria and Avanti Ramraj to his youth empowerment commission. Formally established in 2023, the California Youth Commission provides meaningful opportunities for civic engagement, particularly for disconnected and disadvantaged youth.

Bhutoria has been Chief of Staff at Snappr since 2023, before which he was a Strategy Analyst at Accenture from 2022 to 2023 and a researcher at the Financial Economics Institute from 2019 to 2021. Ramraj of Santa Clara has been an intern at Supporting Initiatives to Redistribute Unused Medicine (SIRUM) since 2024, the governor's office said in a statement. Indian-American Democrat Ashwin Ramaswami Endorses Harris as Presidential Nominee.

She was an intern for the Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association from 2018 to 2021 and an organiser for the California Democratic Fund-Raising Association in 2020. She is also a member of the Stanford Women in Medicine Executive Board. “I am deeply honoured to be part of the first class of founding commissioners for the California Youth Empowerment Commission. This is a unique opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of young people across California," Bhutoria said in a statement. Small Indian-American Community Making Grand Contributions in the US: Report.

"I am committed to addressing the critical issues of our time, such as climate change, education affordability, and creating fair economic opportunities for our generation, ensuring that the voices of our youth are heard and acted upon,” he said. The commission advises the Governor, State Legislature, and the Superintendent of Public Instruction on a range of youth-related issues.

Its mission includes drafting and proposing model legislation that could profoundly impact the state's younger population. “California is yet again leading the nation by creating a pathway to civic engagement between our young leaders and their government so that they can provide critical input on the policies affecting the future of our great state,” Assemblymember Luz Rivas said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)