Joseph Julca was born in Peru and is a marine biologist;
Noelia Cantador is from Madrid and studies Physics, and Veja Zilakauskaite comes from Lithuania and wants to be a graphic designer.
Although apparently their lives are different, the three share the same conviction: save the environment from collapse.
With mountain shoes and work gloves, they move fences between the mountains to restore the fence of the Hayedo de Montejo, in the northern mountains of Madrid, and thus protect the ecosystem from intruding animals.
Julca, Cantador and Zilakasukaite were selected along with 27 other young people to participate in the Planet4all environmental volunteering, carried out last week by the NGO Ayuda en Acción.
At 28 years old, Julca is one of the leaders of the organization Sustainable Alliance for the Oceans in Chile (SOA for its acronym in English).
He is studying a master's degree in scientific communication in Valencia and is convinced that spreading his knowledge is the best way to promote a sustainable world.
“If we are capable of transmitting scientific knowledge, we will surely be able to mobilize so that politicians make the right decisions,” emphasizes the young man from Lima, as he collects pine cones that the volunteers will use in the construction of a hotel for insects.
A group of participants in the Planet4all volunteer program carried out environmental rescue work in the Sierra de Guadarrama, last Wednesday. Guillermo Jimenez Carazo (©GJCarazo / Ayuda en Acción)
"We always pay attention to those who have the experience, but not to those who have the energy," says environmental educator Enrique Pino, who has been giving lessons on the environment for more than two decades.
While guiding the tasks in the beech forest, Pino proudly extols the conscience of the volunteers.
"They are committed to their work and live in a more consistent way with the emergency situation we are experiencing," says the activist, referring to the danger of biodiversity and the climate crisis that is eating away at the planet.
“Three years ago I adopted a more conscious lifestyle: I reduced my meat consumption, I started recycling, and I decided to consume what is fair,” says Noelia Cantador, on her way to the hostel in Buitrago de Lozoya where they are staying and where The rest of the day's activities will take place.
Although she is not studying a career strictly dedicated to environmental protection, she knows that in her day to day she can contribute to caring for the environment, and the work in the mountains has boosted her motivation.
"I want to find other volunteers in the area to continue helping," she says with a sparkle in her voice, after mentioning that her family buys vegetables from a gardener in another town in Madrid.
The Planet4all camp is part of a package of initiatives financed by the European Union in 12 countries on the continent, in order to promote sustainable development
Training young people who feel capable of promoting environmental initiatives in their surroundings is the driving force of Planet4all volunteering.
"We want them to ask themselves, what can I do? How can I influence my family, my friends, my work, my university...?" explains Begoña Rodríguez, project coordinator at Ayuda en Acción, a Spanish NGO that focuses its efforts on supporting people to transform their communities, present in more than 20 countries.
Planet4all is part of a package of initiatives financed by the European Union, promoted by different NGOs of cooperation and humanitarian action in 12 countries of the continent, in order to promote sustainable development.
That future is also a goal shared by Veja Zilakauskate, who intends to link her graphic design career with the promotion of a greener world.
"In my work I can help so that, through advertising, campaigns with environmental themes are disseminated," says the young woman from Lithuania, who smiles when she remembers the orchard she had in the garden of her house, during her childhood in the town of Telsiai, in the north of his country.
Enrique Pino supervises the work of the volunteers, while they learn to make soaps and insect repellents.©GJCarazo / Ayuda en Acción
With small actions such as maintaining the orchard of the old Zilakauskate house, Pino educates his pupils, sharing the environmental projects of the residents of Sierra de Guadarrama, which extends for almost 340 square kilometers, from the confines of the capital.
“There are a lot of examples of sustainability-related neighborhood initiatives here.
Ecological consumption projects, sustainable mobility, recovery of orchard spaces, community chicken coops, and many other cooperation actions”, lists Pino, who knows first-hand all the care of the ecosystems in the area.
Walks along ecological trails, support for environmental education centers, rescue efforts for native species and discussion workshops on climate change and biodiversity are some of the activities that the young people have carried out as volunteers.
María Ruiz, an Andalusian veterinary student, has recorded the most important moments of the camp and to share the lessons with her Instagram followers.
With the mobile, she records the process of her classmates, while they learn to make soaps based on caustic soda, mosquito repellents with natural essences and honey bee wax looms to wrap food and replace the use of plastic covers.
Julca, Cantador and Zilakausakaite wave the wax-smeared cloths to dry.
"I can't wait to do it at home," says Cantador, who has already memorized the entire wrapping process to show it to his parents and his younger sister.
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