Valarie Kauris is a renowned civil rights leader, lawyer, best-selling author, award-winning filmmaker, educator, innovator, and celebrated prophetic voice. She leads the revolutionary Love Project to reclaim love as a force for justice. Valarie burst into American consciousness in the wake of the 2016 election when her Watch Night Service address went viral with 40 million views worldwide. Her question “Is this the darkness of the tomb–or the darkness of the womb?” reframed the political moment and became a mantra for people fighting for change. In the last twenty years, Valarie has won policy change on multiple fronts–hate crimes, racial profiling, immigration detention, solitary confinement, Internet freedom, and more. She founded Groundswell Movement, Faithful Internet, and the Yale Visual Law Project to inspire and equip advocates at the intersection of spirituality, storytelling, and justice. Valarie has been a regular TV commentator on MSNBC and contributor to CNN, NPR, PBS, the Hill, Huffington Post, and The Washington Post. A daughter of Sikh farmers in California’sheartland, Valarie earned degrees at Stanford University, Harvard Divinity School, and Yale Law School. Valarie’s debut book, See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love, was released in 2020 and expands on her “blockbuster” TED Talk.
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Centers and Practice Areas
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Asia Center
Extends the reach and impact of the Milken Institute to the Asia-Pacific region
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Center for Financial Markets
Conducts research and constructs programs designed to facilitate smooth and efficient operation of financial markets
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Center for the Future of Aging
Advances healthy longevity and financial security for all through high-impact policies, research, convenings, and multisector partnerships.
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Center for Public Health
Develops research, programs, and initiatives designed to envision and activate sustainable solutions leading to better health for individuals and communities worldwide.
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Center for Regional Economics and California Center
Analyzes the dynamics that drive job creation and promote industry expansion
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Center for Strategic Philanthropy
Empowers philanthropists to effectively address some of the world's most urgent problems
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FasterCures
Clears roadblocks that prevent medical breakthroughs from reaching patients sooner
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Financial Innovations Labs
Addressing society's greatest challenges through a financial lens
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Global Market Development
Working with government partners in emerging and developing economies to build strong, domestic financial markets.
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Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream
Anyone with a dream should have the opportunity to make it come true—through determination and an economic system that works for all
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Research Department
Addressing global policy issues on Health Economics, International Finance, and Regional Economics
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