Francisco Javier Vera Manzanares is a 14-year-old Colombian human rights defender and activist. At the age of 9, he founded the Guardianes por la Vida Collective, a platform for children to advocate for climate justice and environmental peace, as well as the rights of children. He is also the creator and promoter of the Ecoesperanza concept.
He has been appointed as Goodwill Ambassador of the European Union Delegation in Colombia, First Defender of Climate Action for Latin America and the Caribbean for UNICEF, and Young Champion of the OurVoiceOurFuture Campaign by the European External Action Service.
Vera Manzanares has served as a Children’s Advisor to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child for General Comment No. 26 on Climate Change and the Environment. He is also an advisor to the Climate Council of Demoslab in Spain.
In 2023, he was recognized by the UN in Geneva at the Young Activists Summit for his efforts in protecting the planet and the future.
In 2022, Editorial Planeta published his first book, “Ask Francisco: What is Climate Change?” which was translated into Arabic in 2023.
He has participated in high-level forums defending the human right to a healthy, clean, and dignified environment. Since 2022, he has been advocating politically through the Ecohope Declaration, a manifesto signed by children and adolescents calling on governments worldwide to prioritize life and decarbonize economies. He has also developed environmental, climate, and civic education programs in more than a dozen regions across Colombia.
