Moving Others to Action

Bloomberg Fellow, and 2026 Bloomberg American Health Summit Speaker, Elena Jackendoff, lives in West Philadelphia, where she sees the impact of violence every day. In 2024, there were twice as many shootings in her neighborhood than in the zip code just one mile away. “Regardless of privilege or class,” she says, “gun violence is impossible to escape in this country, and its physical and emotional toll lasts long after the headlines fade.”  

Today, Jackendoff serves as the Associate Director of Digital Advocacy at Everytown for Gun Safety. In this role, she writes and places ads supporting the organization’s messaging. She coordinates with the field team to move supporters from online to offline action and tests new ways to recruit volunteers.  

"The movement is only as powerful as those who drive it,” Jackendoff notes. “Volunteers knocking on doors, signing letters to the editor, calling legislators, and showing up at rallies, really matter. Survivors and those most affected by gun violence do work on the ground that no ad ever could.” 

Through her Bloomberg Fellowship, Jackendoff hopes to enhance her ability to use data-driven strategies to build an evidence-to-message-testing pipeline . 

Tune in to watch Elena, and countless other incredible guests, speak live at the 2026 Bloomberg American Health Summit on October 20, 2026. Click here to watch the livestream.