Lady Gaga and Oprah Join for Anti-Bully Project

Lady Gaga has found herself an unlikely ally in her quest to change the world after joining forces with Oprah Winfrey to launch an anti-bullying youth foundation at Harvard University.

The 25-year-old pop superstar teamed up with the queen of chat to launch the Born This Way Foundation, designed to empower young people and tackle bullying.

Joined at the launch event by Winfrey, spiritual leader Deepak Chopra, and US health and human services secretary Kathleen Sebelius, the songstress urged students to "challenge meanness and cruelty".

"If you have revolutionary potential, you must make the world a better place and use it," she told the audience of more than 1,000 students.

The singer explained that it was her own experience of bullying and her mother's unwavering support that inspired her to start the foundation.

"She is the sole reason that I am here today. She has always believed in me. She has always been my support and she makes me want to inject that sense of family and support into the world," Gaga said.

Gaga's mother, Cynthia Germanotta, will be president of the foundation, which has been named after Gaga's 2011 album and hit song.

Dressed in a black dress and blazer, Germanotta said she was of her daughter.

"Today is a special day for my daughter and I as we share with everyone something we've been working on for almost a year and have been talking about as mother and daughter for much longer," she said.