board members

 

Vanessa shin, President

Vanessa Shin is passionate about advocating for climate leadership on the local level. As a previous mentor for the Santa Clara Action Team, she brings experience and enthusiasm for climate action plan implementation and community outreach. She graduated from Santa Clara University with a degree in environmental science.

 
 
 

kaushik tota, vice president

Kaushik Tota, a founding youth member of SVYCA and the first co-lead of the Sunnyvale Youth Climate Action Team, strives to address the climate crisis through community engagement, policy action, and technological advancement. Over the past 8 years, he has been involved in climate education and advocacy efforts focused on awareness and elevating the voices of youth. He has worked at the intersection of technology and sustainability in the public sector, private sector, and in academia. Kaushik graduated from the California Institute of Technology where he studied computer science, business, and environmental science.

 
 
 

Kristen Lyn, TREASURER

Kristen has 20 years experience in professional accounting as well as more than 10 years of supervisory experience and budget development responsibility. She worked at Deloitte for 4 years and helped 4 IPO companies for years afterwards. Additionally, Kristen was a Cupertino School Board Trustee, CUSD designated representative for SSC School Boards Association, Treasurer for Asian Pacific Islander School Board Members Association and CFO for Shin Shin Educational Foundation. Currently, Kristen is the Head of Revenue (Earnings) in a Public company. She is also the Co-President of Asian American Parents Association.

 
 
 

Daphne Zhu, former Youth Director

Daphne Zhu is a student at Duke University and previously served as an inaugural Youth Co-Director of SVYCA from 2024-2025. She has also served as a co-lead of the San Jose Team from 2023-2025, and co-founded and co-led the Nature-Based Solutions Action Team in 2024. Daphne is passionate about climate education, environmental justice, and ecosystem preservation, and continues to fight for climate action and climate-friendly policies at Duke University.

 
 
 

Amanda Bancroft

Amanda Bancroft is the Lead Sustainability Specialist at NASA Ames where she consults on environmental policy, facility conservation measures, and organizing Green Team meetings. Prior to that role she led the 350 Silicon Valley chapter of San Jose which entailed educating and empowering residents to advocate for climate action at the city level. Amanda has over 5+ years in the solar marketing sector and is a strong advocate for deploying renewables. She received her degree in Environmental Studies with an emphasis in Sustainability and Social Justice at San Francisco State University. She is ecstatic to be supporting SVYCA's mission to empower youth and young adults to combat climate change through education and policy initiatives!

 
 
 

Dashiell leeds

Dashiell Leeds is the Conservation Organizer for the Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter. With a focus on stopping gas pipelines, Dashiell has fought for climate laws in many Bay Area Cities. Along with many other dedicated activists, he supported San Jose’s gas prohibition in new buildings  as well as all-electric new-building codes and Climate Action Plans in over a dozen cities. He loves forests and is passionate about protecting streams and wetlands. He is also a vocal advocate for bird-safe design and policies to reduce light pollution. 

 
 
 
 

Jayden Wan, Former Youth Director

Jayden Wan is a student at Stanford University studying Civil Engineering and a LEED Green Associate with the U.S. Green Building Council. He currently mentors SVYCA's San Mateo County Team, having served as Co-Lead between 2022 and 2025. Jayden also served as SVYCA's 2024-2025 Youth Co-Director, working to strengthen organizational consistency and an ease of knowledge transfer between generations of student leaders. Jayden also serves as the Youth Advisor to Elders Action Network's Future Design Group, challenging short-term thinking in local decision-making through "Future Design," which leverages intergenerational foresight as an inclusive and effective tool for community planning.

 
 
 

Tara Sreekrishnan, Co-Founder of SVYCA

Tara currently serves as Deputy Chief of Staff to California State Senator Dave Cortese. Tara is currently a member of the Board of Education in Santa Clara County. Her community work includes serving on the Friends of Deer Hollow Farm Board of Directors, the Silicon Valley Clean Energy Customer Advisory Group, and the Bay Area for Clean Environment Board of Directors. She co-founded the Silicon Valley Youth Climate Action (SVYCA).