Young activist sets up bank to tackle poverty and environmental damage

For José, it began with a simple question – why were there so many children living in poverty?

"There were children working in the streets and I did not understand what was happening,” he said.

José, who was seven at the time, knew he had grown up fortunate. He went to school, was able to eat regularly and had been surrounded by love and care of his family. His grandmother taught him how important a healthy environment was. Yet he still wanted to do something about the poverty and environmental problems he saw daily.

“I just grasped that problem as if it were mine, as if I was suffering from it and I wanted to make a difference,” said José, now 16. “So I think that's what made me think it might work."

His response was, at age 7, to create his own bank. The Banco del Estudiante Bartselena is a bank for children and the environment. The bank uses recyclable waste that is picked by the children customers, to help them earn money to put into accounts. This money can then be used to pay for things like food or school fees.

To date, 2,500 children aged between 7 and 18 have used this bank to buy food or study, and 4,000 more are in the process of being enrolled.

"When I started it was just me at a table with a notebook where I wrote down everything,” he said.  “Now, more than nine years later I have more than 6,600 clients. I have a team that helps me make this all work and improve the idea. So, basically in these nine years I have been able to become a real financial institution."

José’s results keep him motivated to continue. The bank has helped lift people, especially children out of poverty, as well as has been responsible for collecting approximately 15 tons of solid waste per month for recycling, tackling environmental challenges as well.

"So what motivates me is the realization that there is still a long way to go in this area," he said.

José believes that his work helps to promote equality, a concept he sees as key to lifting his peers out of poverty.

"What I do promotes equality, in equal opportunities for children, in quality of life, in access to education. Basically what I try to do is ensure that children can have equal rights," he said.

And it’s helping to ensure equal rights for all children is what José says makes him a human rights defender.

"Above all," he said, he looks "to the rights of children and the environment. I consider myself a person who defends the rights of children, adolescents and young people and of our nature."

José has received numerous awards and recognition for his work, including UNICEF’s International Prize in 2014 and the Children Climate Prize in 2018. He also received an award at the Young Activists Summit in Geneva in November 2021.

This story is part of Human Rights Champions – a recurring series featuring portraits of human rights defenders or organizations that stand up for human rights.

Learn more about José and his work in the video below.