Luis Henao Murcia has distinguished himself over the last 15 years for his leadership in social and environmental issues. He has formal training as an ecological farmer and journalist. He spearheaded initiatives to discourage drug use and the forced recruitment of children and teens by armed organizations from the municipality of Calamar Guaviare through radio, television, and social media. He has led environmental education programs in the buffer zones of the Serrana del Chiribiquete National Natural Park and has advocated for restoration as a means of combating climate change.

IVLP Impact Award Project: Guardianes de Chiribiquete School Collaborates on Climate Action

The project trained 30 students through environmental education seminars. The participants learned about caring for environment and the Amazon ecosystem, generating expertise in communication tools to share and inspire others, becoming "Guardianes del Chiribiquete" and working together to adapt to and mitigate climate change through forest conservation. A reforestation day was held where 200 seedlings were planted with teachers, children, and parents of the village. Participants also painted a mural with themes of conservation and climate change mitigation and developed their own photographs and videos.

“I want to thank you for coming to teach us how to take care of the environment, plant trees in our water source and share all your knowledge with us.” – Project Participant

IVLP Exchange Experience 

Luis was a participant in the IVLP Project The Climate Crisis: Working Together for Future Generations, organized by the U.S. Department of State and Meridian International Center.

Luis's exchange experience led to the development of his IVLP Impact Award Project: "[IVLP] had a great impact on me and made me reflect on how important and key it is to preserve the Amazon forests in Latin America."

U.S. Communities Visited

Washington, DC; Boulder, CO; Denver, CO; Miami, FL, Chicago, IL

"All this experience led me to seek actions on how to mitigate the climate crisis and that environmental education is an important action to continue in the conservation of forests." - Luis Henao Murcia

Country: Colombia

Click here to go back to the IVLP Impact Awards Main Page