David Li

David Li is a teenager advocate in the areas of food sustainability and security, smart cities and racial justice. Through gaining real world learning and working experience in GIS modeling, urban studies and social justice movements, he aspires to deliver system changes and create a measurable impact in healthier food ecosystems, sustainable urban development, and racial equity.

Growing up, David noticed the stark contrasts between an affluent West Austin and marginalized East Austin. Every week when attending Chinese school, he would see the difference in quality of infrastructure between the two communities.

Inspired to create change, David joined his city’s youth council to tackle social inequalities through political platforms. He now represents the youth council on a national level and actively pursues solutions to inequalities through GIS technologies and analyzing urban patterns. 

David has further pursued his passion in tackling social inequities through his work at the World Food Forum by UN FAO. Speaking with other youth advocates from around the world, he was able to present both issues and solutions to food insecurity in Austin.

In the future, he wants to keep working towards more sustainable and equitable cities through the use of technology and data science. He is particularly interested in tackling problems in urban studies related to environmental sustainability and race and wealth gaps. He aims to build networks of like-minded peers and inspire others to pursue community awareness and engagement.