This story was written by: Teen Vogue2024 Student ReportersA team of college students and recent graduates monitor the election cycle in key battleground states.

Cara Nicole she spends her days sorting through aesthetic stockpiling videos and useless celebrity products. Her humorous, spotlight videos on financial literacy have earned her more than 222,000 subscribers on YouTube, where she goes by the handle @thefinancialfreedomgirl.

Recently, Nicole and a group of other creators took to Capitol Hill to talk about a perhaps less fun but no less important financial topic: taxes. The event, spearheaded by Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Tina Smith of Minnesota, was dedicated to highlighting the looming fight over Donald Trump’s future. Sweeping tax cuts in 2017. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act resulted in nearly $2 trillion in tax cuts that greatly benefited large corporations and high-income earners. Some key provisions of the law are set to expire at the end of 2025, but could be extended next year depending on who controls Congress. That’s why Senators Warren and Smith recruited a group of creators to help spread the word about what they call the “2025 Tax Fight” to diverse young audiences on social media.

Teen Vogue We caught up with Nicole to learn more about her experiences at the event and how she uses content creation to encourage civic engagement.

This conversation has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

Teen Vogue: What was it like to be a part of the recent tax challenge event in DC?

Cara Nicole: I’d only seen (the senators) on TV before, and when I see them in real life, there’s that surreal moment… you’re like, “Oh, wow, they’re real people.” They are living and breathing. “They’re not just pixels on the screen.” But it was also surreal, like a history buff, to be at the Capitol and to be in a place that I’ve been studying for so long. Learning about tax policy and economics and the way we communicate that to everyday people has been really impactful for me as someone who creates content that tries to explain complex money topics to people and make people feel engaged.