Food, art, culture, weather, beaches, mountains—and people, from all over the world and with a broad range of talents and dreams—make Los Angeles an amazing place to live. A homelessness and housing crisis, drought, traffic, inequality, and political dysfunction can make Los Angeles an impossible place to live. The county is home to areas with the lowest and highest rates of child poverty in the state; innovative tech companies and broadband dead zones; and some of America’s best infrastructure to support green energy as well as poor air quality and deeply entrenched, polluting industries. Los Angeles has a serious gap between its potential and its reality. How are individuals and organizations working to harness L.A.’s many resources to solve its worst problems? What would the best possible Los Angeles look like, and how can the entire city come together to create a shared vision?

Gloria Gonzalez, Youth Development Coordinator at Youth Justice Coalition, and Sissy Trinh, Founder and Executive Director of the Southeast Asian Community Alliance, visit Zócalo to discuss the efforts that inspire them—from mutual aid to policy change—and what they think it will take for Los Angeles to live up to its full potential, for all Angelenos.

This event is part of the LA2050 Grants Challenge. Vote here now for the issues that matter most to you.