Students across the Bay Area are gaining new ways to access the news, receive updates and find opportunities to engage in their community through an organization called the Key Future Network.

Founded by full-time Diablo Valley College student Anya Gupta, KFN is a youth-led news channel that reports on local issues, empowers youth perspectives and helps connect students with public officials.

“Starting out, our biggest challenge was building credibility and reaching an audience as a small and independent platform,” said Gupta, who launched the organization in 2013 when she was only in elementary school.

“Being a one-person team initially meant managing reporting, production, and promotion all at once, which required learning on the fly and experimenting with different formats to see what works.”

Gupta, who now studies Business Administration at DVC, is also the President of the DVC Marketing Club and is the youth seat and an elected member on the Contra Costa County Behavioral Health Board. She said she has always wanted to help young people, as well as achieve her own dream of becoming a news reporter.

“What Key Future Network hopes to accomplish is to help young students be more tuned in to the news and what’s going on throughout the world,” Gupta said in an email.

Specifically, she added, “We want students to have a clearer understanding of where industries, communities, and careers are heading in the near future.”

Gupta stated that her key priorities for the news organization address four points: “Access, Future Thinking, Youth Voice, [and] Local Relevance.”

In terms of access, Gupta said she wants to help bring students closer to other organizations and leaders that might otherwise remain unheard or under-represented within the community — and help bring those groups to light so that others can be better informed about what is happening around them.

Gupta shared that her organization focuses on global trends and how students can prepare themselves physically as well as mentally for what is coming next. In particular, KFN is looking at local industries, where they are likely to be in the future, and how they are going to change in the 2030s.

“We’d like to collaborate with Waymo to produce content highlighting innovations in self-driving technology and how they could shape the future of transportation in the Bay Area and beyond,” said Gupta when discussing what the future holds for her organization.

KFN’s goal is to give students a clearer view of what the future may look like, Gupta added, and how they can be a part of it.

“A breakthrough moment for KFN was hosting our first networking event” on Oct. 21 in the Diablo Room, she said, which was attended by “many industry leaders.”

“It successfully brought together students and professionals, helping build a sense of community around our mission.”

Gupta added that such visibility “has also opened [the] doors for future collaborations and more networking events to come.”

She said that KFN hopes to collaborate with governmental organizations in the Bay Area, educational institutions, and also tech leaders to empower youth and create content that informs and inspires a broader audience.

“We’re excited about futuristic partnerships that showcase innovative solutions to global challenges and give viewers a fresh perspective on the future,” Gupta said.

Looking ahead, she said, “we’re planning to collaborate with the DVC Alumni Association and the East Bay Chambers of Commerce.”

In addition to all of the reporting that KFN conducts, the organization is actively involved in multiple projects, including one of its main efforts, called “The Future In Focus: 2030” series, in which Gupta airs interviews with teachers, policymakers, leaders and others within the community.

Gupta said KFN also started a new podcast in 2025 to highlight professionals sharing their unique perspectives in their community.

“Key Future Network has conducted interviews with several leaders and people in the community, such as Diablo Valley College President Dr. Monica Chahal and Walnut Creek Mayor Cindy Darling,” she said.

KFN has conducted additional interviews with District 4 Supervisor Ken Carlson, District Attorney Diana Becton, John Muir Hospital CEO Mike Thomas, and the mayors of Vallejo, Concord and Pleasant Hill, according to Gupta.

She said the KFN team is always looking for new members.

“We are recruiting students who can do reporting, editing, social media, and outreach, whether you like being in front of the camera or behind the scenes,” said Gupta.

“This organization works to build student networks by helping create new opportunities for students to meet people in their professional field and learn directly from them.”

With every interview and connection, KFN opens another door for students across the Bay Area, and those doors are leading towards a future they’re already helping to shape.