Julie Lam
Meet Julie Lam, Founder and Content Creator of MaskTogetherAmerica
Julie Lam is the Founder of MaskTogetherAmerica, a leading public health initiative established in 2020 to address the U.S. COVID-19 crisis. What began as a nationwide awareness campaign promoting masked portraits has evolved into a comprehensive advocacy organization focusing on layered mitigation, including vaccination, clean air infrastructure, and community masking.
Operating primarily through social media, MaskTogetherAmerica reaches hundreds of thousands of individuals monthly. The initiative showcases Lam’s expertise in strategic communications, writing, and photography—skills honed over a distinguished career as a Creative Director at prominent advertising agencies. Her participation in award-winning campaigns for Fortune 500 companies like TD Ameritrade, American Express, Motorola, and Time Warner earned her prestigious industry accolades, including The One Show, Emmy, D&AD, and the London International Advertising Award.
In 2026, Lam has centered her advocacy on the Airborne Act of 2026 (H.R. 7460), championing the bill introduced by Rep. Don Beyer to incentivize building owners to upgrade ventilation and indoor air quality standards. Through her Long COVID Defense Series, she has initiated vital discussions with world-renowned experts, including Yale immunologist Dr. Akiko Iwasaki, to explore the root causes of the illness and the latest in research and prevention.
A dedicated "Messenger" in the public health community, Lam serves as a key community representative at NIH RECOVER. Her role is instrumental in ensuring that the lived experiences of those with Long COVID—a community she belongs to—are central to large-scale medical research. Her personal experience with the condition, which exacerbated pre-existing autoimmune issues, informs her nationwide advocacy, including speaking at the Long COVID awareness demonstration in Washington, D.C., where she advocated for comprehensive preventive measures beyond vaccination alone. She later coordinated with over 30 organizations to advocate for the Home Test to Treat program and met with CDC officials to propose urgent recommendations for isolation and prevention guidelines.
Beyond public health advocacy and research co-authorship, Lam continues to use creative media to illuminate the patient experience. In 2026, she co-produced and edited the short film Strangely Optimistic for the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge, a project exploring the "push-crash" cycles of Long COVID.
Based in New York, Lam is a member of the Cambridge Common Writers and holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Lesley University, with additional academic credentials from Hong Kong Polytechnic and Massachusetts College of Art. Her work and perspective on the pandemic have been featured in outlets such as Forbes (2024), PBS NewsHour (2024), USA Today (2024), CBS Chicago (2023) and The Sick Times (2026).
Published Works:
#MaskTogetherAmerica (New York Voice • 11/1/2020)
Humanity Behind Masks (New York Voice • 6/30/2020)
New York Mojo (New York Voice • 4/26/2020)
Viral Reality (Medium, Curator Distributed • 4/13/2020)
Mask with Me (Medium • 3/22/2020)
A Friendly Reminder about a Contagious Virus (Medium • 3/5/2020)
“You Do You” –NYC Transit System’s Self-Mockery Campaign Backfired (Medium • 9/11/2022)
Research (Co-authored):
