ABOUT THE MILLENNIUM FELLOWSHIP - CLASS OF 2025
United Nations Academic Impact and MCN are proud to partner on the Millennium Fellowship. This year, 60,000+ young leaders applied to join the Class of 2025 on 7,000+ campuses across 170 nations. 290+ campuses worldwide (less than 5%) were selected to host the 4,500+ Millennium Fellows.
UNITED NATIONS ACADEMIC IMPACT AND MCN PROUDLY PRESENT KATRINA ROSE MACHETTA, A MILLENNIUM FELLOW FOR THE CLASS OF 2025.
Columbia University | New York, United States | Advancing SDG 4, SDG 10 & UNAI 5
" I am honored to be a Millennium Fellow because it is an opportunity to connect with a global community of change makers equally committed to justice, equity, and sustainable development. I'm eager to collaborate across cultures and disciplines, build solutions that empower marginalized voices, and further my journey as a bridge-builder dedicated to creating a more inclusive world. "
Millennium Fellowship Project: Crafting Connections
Crafting Connections is an intergenerational storytelling initiative I founded to bridge the gap between seniors and youth through poetry, creative writing, and shared dialogue. Inspired by the community isolation I witnessed after Hurricane Harvey, the program creates healing-centered spaces where participants can process grief, combat loneliness, and rebuild a sense of belonging. Operating in nursing homes across Houston and New York City, Crafting Connections supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals on good health, well-being, and reduced inequalities by fostering emotional resilience and mutual understanding. Through workshops, reading circles, and volunteer-led activities, the project empowers elderly residents to rediscover their voices and encourages students to cultivate empathy, creativity, and service. At its core, Crafting Connections transforms personal stories into collective strength, proving that hope can be rebuilt one poem and one relationship at a time.
About the Millennium Fellow
Katrina Machetta is a Human Rights major at Columbia University with a concentration in Sustainable Development, while concurrently pursuing studies in International Security and Diplomacy at the School of International and Public Affairs. She is passionate about empowering marginalized communities, building pathways for leadership, and bridging systemic gaps in
access and equity.
Since 2018, Katrina has led nonprofit initiatives focused on restorative justice, gender equity, and youth empowerment. As a Kraft Global Fellow at Columbia, she has served as Global Ambassador for Columbia Multicultural Affairs, Columbia Hall Council Leadership Committee, and Earl Hall Interfaith Fellow. She currently serves as a Residential Adviser at Columbia, and writes for Habitat for Humanity and the New York Women in Communications. Her advocacy and journalistic endeavors earned national recognition, including the Presidential Service Award, Congressional Gold Service Award, National Press Club Scholarship, Yale University’s Bassett Award for leadership, and celebrated as a Youth Poet Laureate finalist and Resident Poet at the Heritage Society.
Katrina aspires to be a bridge-builder—connecting voices, fostering dialogue, and creating solutions for a more just and equitable world.
