The Why – How Students Find Purpose with POB

Author: Amelia Talluri, POB Director Emeritus; currently at Stanford for PhD (Chemical and Systems Biology); UMass Amherst Graduate, Class of 2025 (Biochemistry & Molecular Biology)

As students across the country head back to campus this fall, we’re often asked: what makes POB students so passionate? Why do they come back year after year, and why do so many continue as dedicated Activators (formerly “Reps”) long after graduation? The answer lies in something we have known for a long time, but discovered even more through our partnership with Breast Cancer Prevention Partners (BCPP) this year—the transformative power of connecting personal purpose with meaningful action.

For Protect Our Breasts, joining forces with BCPP marks a major milestone to elevate our mission and deepen our impact. Over their decades of pushing for bans on toxic chemicals like phthalates and PFAS, working with BCPP has given us new insight into policy advocacy. As a youth-led organization, we’ve always believed in the power of informed decision-making. Now, we’re stepping into the space where those decisions can influence not just products on shelves, but the policies that govern them.

What excites me most about this partnership is the opportunity it creates for youth voices to be heard on a larger scale—and how it answers that question about student dedication. When there is mutual support between a national leader like BCPP and student perspectives from POB, it amplifies the power that our generation holds in this movement. This is exactly why students return to POB semester after semester: we’re not just learning about environmental health, we’re actively shaping it. Every chapter meeting, every social media post, every conversation with a peer becomes part of something much bigger than ourselves. 

My involvement in POB has forever changed my perspective of the world and my place in it, as it has for countless other involved students. Whether someone initially joins because of a family history of breast cancer, a reaction to conventional products, or simply curiosity about the science behind everyday choices, we quickly discover that when joining POB, we join a team of driven students and mentors of different educational majors and backgrounds who are encouraged to lead, speak up, and grow together. The support and ideas we exchange with one another spark a ripple effect of creativity and actionable, science-backed information that we proudly share with our community. We see the impact of our work right away—in our own choices, in our families’ increased awareness, in the conversations we start across campus—and we know it matters.

This feeling, which is quite rare to get as an undergraduate student, is what I believe creates such deep, lasting commitment. It’s not just the experience of contributing to something meaningful, but also the confidence in our ability to communicate science, advocate for change, and lead with purpose. POB not only informs us, but it also empowers us. It’s where we realize that the questions we’re asking and the knowledge we’re sharing can genuinely change lives—starting with our own.

This is why POB students become lifelong Activators. We don’t just graduate and move on; we carry this mission into our careers, our families, and our communities. Some go into policy work, others into research, many into completely different fields—but all remain passionate advocates for environmental health. The student who starts a POB chapter as a freshman might become the public health professional leading policy reform banning toxic chemicals, or the parent teaching their children to read ingredient labels, or the business leader prioritizing safer products in their company.

More than anything, POB helps us understand the kind of effect we want to have in the world. That clarity—and the confidence to act on it—stays with us long after we graduate, and that’s what makes POB so special. As we kick off another academic year, we’re excited to welcome new students into this community and watch them discover their own power to create change. Through student-led education based on science, collaboration with industry leaders, and our expanding work in policy engagement through our partnership with BCPP, we’re creating a path for a new generation of changemakers to create a healthier and safer future.

Welcome back to school, POB community—let’s make this year our most impactful yet!