The 12-year-old Colombian activist participated in a conference co-organised by Fundesplai and Plant for the Planet.
The 12-year-old Colombian activist participated in a conference co-organised by Fundesplai and Plant for the Planet.
Francisco Javier Vera Manzanares is a boy who, at the age of 12, has already become a world leader in the fight against climate change. On Wednesday, June 29th, he offered a conference at the headquarters of Fundesplai (El Prat de Llobregat) entitled El futuro está aquí (The future is here), co-organised by Fundesplai and Plant for the Planet, which is an entity that fights against climate change. The young activist also participated in a meeting of young people for the climate. His speech began with an allusion to the importance of thinking about the Earth as a whole: “The planet has no borders, and everything we do on it has consequences”.
Vera Manzanares founded, at the age of 9, the movement called Guardianes por la vida (Guardians for Life), a group that brings together 500 children and youths who promote environmental awareness in her native country. Currently, Guardianes por la vida has become the Colombian equivalent of “Fridays for Future”, the initiative led by Greta Thunberg against global warming. The young activist recalled that very often children are placed away from the public debate on climate change, which also affects them as citizens of the present (not of the future): “We already have a voice, we don’t need to have any given: we need to be heard”.
His words conveyed positivism in an auditorium filled with a large number of children and youths: “Boys and girls can create organizations to combat climate change, and become activists ourselves. We can all influence society a lot through our actions”.
In his speech, he also explained that he is a boy who combines his studies —he wants to be a physicist, historian or geographer—, hobbies —he is a fan of AuronPlay— and sports activities, with activism. At the end of the event, peace activist Nadia Ghulam gave him her book Soñando la paz (Dreaming of peace).
Once the conference was over, he participated in a workshop with other girls and boys organised by Plant for The Planet.
Advisor to the United Nations and Goodwill Ambassador for the European Union
Besides, his activism has led him to be appointed child advisor to the Committee on the Rights of the Child in the United Nations and Goodwill Ambassador for the European Union in Colombia, and he was invited to the parliament of his country in 2019, where he gave a speech against fracking, animal abuse and the use of plastics.
Francisco Javier Vera Manzanares is also a strong supporter of the Escazú Agreement, the Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean. Among other points, this agreement seeks to protect environmental defenders in this region of the world.
In addition, he focuses a lot of his efforts on spreading information. He published the book Pregúntale a Francisco: ¿Qué es el cambio climático? (Ask Francisco: What is climate change?), and his profiles on social media add up to tens of thousands of people who follow him, to whom he transmits his messages focused on the dissemination of climate change or the concept of “eco-hope” versus “eco-anxiety”, as well as the leading role that children and youths should have in environmental discourses.
This conference is part of Fundesplai’s work for sustainability
This conference of Vera Manzanares is part of the work for environmental education developed by Fundesplai, which is one of its central lines of action. Specifically, the event belongs to the cycle of conferences of the European project EAT:LIFE, which focuses on healthy and sustainable eating.
From a local point of view, the organisation is developing the educational proposal “Menjar canvia el món” (Eating changes the world), which is also focused on sustainable and healthy food systems. It is reaching more than 115,000 children and youths in schools, esplais (centres for educational leisure) and other educational spaces.
Following this, emphasis should also be placed on the 1,500 m2 exhibition “MENJA, ACTUA, IMPACTA” (EAT, ACT, IMPACT). It was inaugurated by Fundesplai in November 2021 at its headquarters in El Prat de Llobregat, and it proposes a reflection on the sustainable and healthy eating based on 5 main ideas: food waste, over packaging with plastics, organic and local agriculture, increasing of vegetable protein and decreasing of ultra-processed products.
The EAT:LIFE project has received funds from the European Union. The contents of this conference are the sole responsibility of Fundesplai and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.