AEASP 2021 Scholar Lauren Lau

Lauren Lau is a rising junior at Pomona College majoring in economics and minoring in Chinese. She graduated from Kamehameha Schools Kapālama, a school founded by Princess Pauahi in 1887. Over the years, Lauren has noticed the exacerbation of many problems within the Hawaiian community including homelessness, poverty and substance abuse. The negative impact of these issues on her fellow kanaka maoli (indigenous people) has created a desire in her to find long-term solutions to these problems. Lauren hopes that through her participation in the AEASP she will gain necessary skills and experience to prepare her for her future aspirations – conducting economic research to find ways to improve the socioeconomic well-being of Native Hawaiians. During her free time, Lauren enjoys making lei poʻo (flower garlands) and playing basketball. A couple interesting facts about Lauren is that her whole family is left-handed and their names all begin with “L”!