Who is Tommy Persaud?

• Tommy Persaud is someone who aspires to serve his community, add value to the world around him, and use technological innovations to improve human quality of life.

How will you change the world?

• Being so young it’s very difficult to really see how I might change the world. I don’t want to be naive and blindly optimistic about the things I want to do, rather I want to be realistic but ambitious. I see myself running for city council in Jersey City at some point in my life. I definitely want to contribute to making a city of people with immigrants, diverse backgrounds, and varying economic statuses, a place that is based on equity and equality. I want to push for a world where people of all economic and ethnic backgrounds can have the same opportunities to succeed. Pushing for a better Jersey City is one way I want to inspire others and contribute meaningfully change to the world around me. Whether I succeed or not, I want to stir up the conversations and discussions that are important to have. I want to bring light to the issues in my local community that are often overlooked or just dismissed. I hope that my actions of making Jersey City a more equitable community will inspire cities of similar backgrounds with high immigrant populations to work towards making their communities more equitable as well. 

What will your epitaph say?

• “To push for a better world isn’t being blindly optimistic, it’s being hopeful and faithful that one day the world can be a place that is truly inclusive, equitable, diverse, and harmonious”