Lu Budzichowski (she/her/hers) is an interdisciplinary professional dedicated to health promotion, harm reduction, and social impact. She joined Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) in 2022 upon enrolling in a Master’s program in Psychology and Spirituality at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she helped reinstate the Columbia SSDP chapter and proposed a remodeling of the Just Say Know peer drug education curriculum. Now serving as SSDP’s Drug Education Program Coordinator, Lu combines her early career experience in product development, project management, and content production with her evolving knowledge of behavioral science and systems thinking to develop accessible, evidence-based, and culturally competent drug education and harm reduction initiatives for youth and educational systems across the United States.

In addition to her work with SSDP, Lu’s commitment to advancing low-barrier health resources is evident throughout her career. Since 2020, she has led no-cost wellness and spirituality-oriented community programming for individuals in recovery through The Phoenix, a nationwide nonprofit sober active community. Lu also participated in an award-winning program at Columbia Health, where she became a certified health and wellness coach—offering services at no additional cost to matriculated students—and a naloxone trainer—providing free educational workshops and access to naloxone for all university stakeholders.

At Teachers College, Lu has supported the first psychedelic science initiatives on campus. She served as Vice President and Director of Strategy and Growth for the Teachers College Interdisciplinary Psychedelic Society, spearheaded a psychedelic harm reduction social marketing campaign for college students, and contributed to research on psychopathology in psychedelic experiences. Her broader research explores the role of spirituality and other mediators in substance use and mental health outcomes.