Meet Our Fall Interns

The Palisadian-Post has welcomed four fall interns to garner experience in the newsroom—proofreading, writing and editing pieces for the paper. Anyone interested in an internship in the future is encouraged to visit palipost.com/internships.

Julia Torres

My name is Julia Torres and I am a second-year political science student at UCLA. Although I am not currently residing in Pacific Palisades, I grew up in the Highlands and consider it to be my home.

You can often find me studying for midterm exams at Caffe Luxxe in the Village, reading at the Bluffs or playing beach volleyball with my family at Will Rogers State Beach. I happily make the short drive down Sunset to remain in touch with our wonderful community.

My interest in journalism is something that has been undeniably cultivated throughout my academic journey. As a student at Brentwood School, I co-founded The Global Monitor, a political news source directed to high schoolers. I wrote extensively about the political climates in the United States and Brazil.

Currently, I am the president of Bruin Review—a prominent publication on UCLA’s campus dedicated to truth through discourse. We aim to encourage free-thinking dialogue at UCLA by researching and writing about contrarian topics that directly impact our student body.

Along with handling the administrative side of the organization, I write quarterly articles for both the opinion and satire sections.

In the future, I aspire to get into legal and political writing after attending law school.

I am excited to be an intern at the Palisadian-Post and learn in a newsroom environment. Along with the technical skills that I will develop as a writer for the Post, I am eager to connect with the businesses and individuals that I see on a regular basis.

I hope to further immerse myself in all things Palisades, even as I continue my education in Westwood.

Dimitri Lykidis

My name is Dimitri Lykidis, and I am eager to learn during my internship at the Palisadian-Post. I am currently a senior at Palisades Charter High School and in my second year writing for the school newspaper, Tideline.

Journalism is a field I fancy due to its evolving and boundless nature. Outside of the letters used, each article is unique. Learning about diseases, entertainment, technology, society, psychology, politics and a lot of other ideas would require a century’s worth of degrees to work in—except in journalism. Some view a master of one as superior to a jack of all trades, but indulging in one discipline is unappealing to me.

This opportunity to contribute to the Post will allow me to dabble in different forms of journalism. How will my writing fare when there are true consequences to how I report? Do I ensure that my reporting is an accurate representation of the community I am covering? The raised stakes of writing for a publication a community relies upon intrigues me.

My goal during this internship is to provide a new voice to the Post and extract knowledge from my peers. I want to highlight issues that may get swept under the rug or outsource perspectives that may have been silenced before.

As an intern, it is my job to not only learn from those around me, but to contribute in a way only I can.

Michela Zecca

My family and I moved from San Francisco to Pacific Palisades nearly one month ago, and from the moment my peripheral vision spotted the lively and hospitable community of the Village, this wonderful place has resonated with my desire to live in a tight-knit environment.

Interning at the Palisadian-Post will give me the opportunity to take on a leadership role and fully immerse myself into the place I now call home. This is the perfect opportunity to live from various perspectives of Palisades’ residents and see this neighborhood from angles beyond a surface-level understanding.

I want to know more about where I live: I want to know the people, the authentic culture, the restaurants, the history and traditions from various points of view. To write about and experience the Palisades first-hand is far more thorough than anything I could learn from scanning the streets from a distance.

I have historically been drawn to creative writing, with a recent passion for poetry, but as my love for writing grew, so has my desire to stretch myself to new forms of literature. I have attended writing camps at The New York Times, Sarah Lawrence and Berkeley, which have all provided a strong foundation for my writing skills, which is why I feel confident that I am ready to further develop my journalistic aspirations. I am a hardworking, diligent and social person who is driven to stretch herself and dive head-first into new situations.

I am very excited to learn about the lives of everyday people and the rich traditions of the Palisades. I will bring my positive attitude, desire to learn and grow, strong communication skills, and love of writing to produce my best work and make the most of this opportunity.

Éva Milan Engel

Éva Milan Engel is a climate activist and a junior at Palisades Charter High School. Over the course of her internship, she will be writing for the Green Tips section of the Palisadian-Post.

Engel organized a climate protest in the community in 2019 that drew hundreds of people to the Village on what was celebrated around the world as “Global Climate Strike Day.” The event raised awareness, inspired people of all ages and drew media attention.

On Black Friday that year, she led hundreds of protesters in a climate march down the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica with the message that Americans should avoid wasteful consumerism for the sake of the climate.

This year, Engel helped Resilient Palisades host the Los Angeles Earth Day Festival at Will Rogers State Park. She is currently working to launch a new climate club at Pali High called the Green Club, aimed at reducing the community’s carbon footprint.

For her efforts, Engel received a Certificate of Appreciation from Mayor Eric Garcetti. She has also been awarded a Certificate of Recognition by California State Assemblyman Richard Bloom for her “strong commitment to climate activism.”

Engel’s climate action has also been praised by environmentalist Bill McKibben and former U.S. Secretary of Labor, author and activist Robert Reich.

When she’s not fighting for the climate, Engel can be found on the tennis courts. She plays for her school’s varsity girls tennis team.

Engel also enjoys traveling. Last summer she participated in a leadership retreat in Costa Rica where she worked with other teens to build a playground for disadvantaged youth.

Engel has also traveled to Thailand, South Korea, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, Mexico and to 23 states in the country.