Youth Civics Think Tank Hosts Former UN Assistant Secretary-General Lakshmi Puri for Student-Led Conversation on Diplomacy and Women’s Leadership

LOS ANGELES:- Cerritos High School senior Eshan Patil and the Youth Civics Think Tank brought students, civic leaders, authors, and members of the community together on September 23 for an evening with Lakshmi Puri, former United Nations Assistant Secretary-General and former Deputy Executive Director of UN Women.

Organized by the Youth Civics Think Tank, or YCTT, the event combined a discussion of Puri’s novel, Swallowing the Sun, with a student-led conversation about diplomacy, women’s leadership, advocacy, public service, and the responsibilities of the next generation.

Patil founded YCTT to expand the role young people can play in civic and policy conversations. Aparna Hande also served as a primary organizer of the event, helping coordinate the evening and its broader program.

“I originally founded the Youth Civics Think Tank because I’ve seen that too often young people are talked about in civic spaces, but never really get the chance to contribute to them,” Patil said. “My goal is to create opportunities where students can actually engage the very people shaping policy, diplomacy, and public well-being.”

The evening opened with networking and conversations among attendees before YCTT introduced its work and recognized community leaders in attendance.

Dr. K. J. Srinivasa, the inaugural Consul General of India in Los Angeles, attended the full program and delivered remarks about Puri and her work. La Palma Mayor Nitesh Patel, who serves as an advisor to YCTT, also attended and formally honored Puri during the program. City of Artesia Councilmember Zeel Ahir was also in attendance, joining the broader civic and community conversation.

A major portion of the event centered on Swallowing the Sun. Puri discussed the novel’s inspirations, characters, themes, connections to real experiences, and use of poetry and storytelling. The discussion explored themes including women’s experiences, family, history, identity, and social change.

“What made Swallowing the Sun such a strong fit for this event was that the book opens the door to much larger conversations about gender, history, identity, family, and social change,” Patil said. “It gave us a way to connect literature with the kinds of civic questions we want young people thinking about.”

At the center of the program was a fireside conversation led by Patil and Saivi Sodhi, a junior at Fairmont Preparatory Academy in California and a member of the YCTT team.

Rather than focusing only on Puri’s book, the students asked about her path through diplomacy, her advocacy for women, her experience in international institutions, and the lessons she would pass on to young people interested in public service.

“What made this event especially meaningful was the opportunity for young people to learn directly from someone who has spent decades working at the highest levels of diplomacy and women’s advocacy,” Patil said. “We wanted the conversation to focus not only on what Ambassador Puri has accomplished, but on what the next generation can learn from her experience.”

The program also recognized seven U.S.-based authors for their literary and community contributions. YCTT team members, including Omkar Siddeswaran and Aditya Komaragiri, joined Patil and Sodhi in supporting the youth-led program.

For YCTT, the evening reflected a broader goal of expanding who feels welcome in civic institutions and who receives meaningful opportunities to participate.

“Civic or political participation should not be age-dependent, nor should it depend on your race, background, or experience navigating institutions,” Patil said. “We want people from every background imaginable to feel that they have a real, legitimate place in these conversations.”