Actress Laura Dern, who works closely with organisations that are trying to protect the environment and the rights of immigrants, says she feels "desperate" to try and better the world.

"For me, there's so much egregious undoing of hard-fought environmental laws that have been put into place to give us clear air, clean water and a clean environment," she said of her determination to help, reported people.com.

"These should be basic rights and they are being stripped away," added the "Big Little Lies" star who is one of People magazine's '25 Women Changing the World'.

Dern, 51, supports the National Resources Defence Council (NRDC) in its efforts to create "active change you can see".

She is also a strong supporter of groups like Kids in Need of Defence and Justice in Motion, which protects migrant rights across borders to help separated families find each other.

Reuniting families and protecting their rights as immigrants "is God's work," the actress said, adding: "These families that are in terror deserve to find each other."

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