Carmen Salva

In 1997, Carmen Salva, teacher at “Domingo Faustino Sarmiento” School in Tilcara, a village located in Quebrada de Humahuaca (Jujuy), sadly begins to realize that her home town’s natural environment is being gradually destroyed, that tourists show disregard for the landscape they are visiting, and that there is a lack of interest on the part of the government in protecting this village and its surrounding area.
Thus she gathers children and young people from her school who enthusiastically join in the environmental crusade. This is how “Agrupación Esperanza de Vida” (Hope for Life Association) came into being, bringing together children of school age.

La Agrupación “Esperanza de Vida”
Over time, children and teenagers started bringing more people together to protect such a wonderful place. Little by little, they amounted to 60 students, later joined by 10 parents and a number of settlers.
Today this group is made up of around 150 people committed to the preservation of the environment. There are about 80 children and young people who regularly take part in the different activities

Goal

The participating population brings about a daily multiplier effect, as every day this association manages to raise awareness, trigger reflection and add volunteers for the campaigns and projects it develops and implements.

Through environmental care, Carmen is constantly drawing up pilot projects that provide employment opportunities for these families, such as recycling, community gardens, organic fertilizers, etc., and focus on the youngest who usually migrate to the cities looking for jobs.