As Founder and President of the Asociación Guatemaltecos Sin Fronteras, Carlos Lam works tirelessly to support the underserved in the Latino community. He runs campaigns to assist those in need after natural disasters in Central America and to assist communities at home hit hard by COVID-19. Lam’s activism does not stop there. He is the Director of Community Outreach for Defensores de la Cuenca, an organization that is dedicated to connecting the Latine community with the natural world.

Lam, whose community activism began at a young age in Guatemala, has been serving underrepresented communities for most of his life. His gateway into community advocacy began in his early teens, during Las Posadas, when he was invited by church youth to participate in a gift drive for children. That experience led him to participate in community outreach through the church, that led to a series of events that brought him and his advocacy to the United States.

Lam, who studied political science, philosophy, and theology, in addition to spending five years studying to become a Catholic Priest, understood that his calling was to participate in the Latino community to support social justice and grow community participation in environmental issues. He worked for over a decade and a half in the non-profit sector across Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica promoting socio-economic equity. In Guatemala, he worked to keep young people out of gangs and away from drugs by running youth camps and coordinating recreational activities, all while sharing the importance of taking care of the Earth. Lam also worked on a UNESCO project promoting the culture of Guatemala and peace building in a torn community. “This was important because after 35 years of conflict in Guatemala, there was a lot of division, so I worked teaching communication and tolerance,” says Lam. Lack of economic opportunities and violence toward Lam’s family, including the murder of his younger brother, led him to the decision to immigrate to the US in 2004.

Drawing from his life’s work, Lam integrates environmental conservation into the Latino community and by connecting the community, the culture, and the environment, he has created capacity across the Maryland and DC region for Latinx participation, “We cannot talk about any of the things without the other, it’s all connected.” He has focused his efforts and talents on supporting the Latinx community and environmental stewardship at local and region levels, throughout the DC metropolitan region. As a partner of regional conservation organizations, such as the Anacostia Watershed Society, he has connected Latinx businesses with area festivals such as the Festival del Rio Anacostia. His connections have put aspects of Guatemalan culture, such as music and folk dancing in the spotlight. As Director of Community Outreach for Defensores de la Cuenca, he has been able to connect his humanitarian efforts within the Latino community with his passion for environmental advocacy. Lam enriches the community by connecting the public with regional greenspaces, coordinating outreach events, and encouraging members of Latinx communities to become environmental stewards. His work unifying the social and environmental spheres is what makes him a Naturally Latinos Environmental Champion. 

Karen Ramos is a social media influencer who advocates for Latinx people and Indigenous peoples and their representation in the conservation field. Previously self-described as a “non activist, non radical, white washed, “normal” person, who didn’t want to ruffle any feathers, offend anyone, or stir the pot…” Ramos had an awakening which led her to come to terms with the insecurities and the trauma of discrimination she faced as a person of color. Growing from that experience, she found the courage and energy she needed to form the nonprofit Get Out Stay Out/Vamos Afuera, an organization committed to serving migrant indigenous populations of the Central Coast. From there, Nature Chola was born.

Nature Chola is a platform that Ramos built to amplify a variety of social and environmental justice issues. Accessibility, #FakeVanLife, and being a person of color in the great outdoors, are just a few of the topics she covers. Ramos says that “navigating this space is truly a privilege” and that she is learning daily and failing, but learning from those fails. Her humility, influence, and advocacy for people of color in green spaces are what make her a Naturally Latinos Environmental Champion.

Carlos Sanchez Gonzalez is currently a sophomore at Benjamin Franklin High School in Baltimore City.  In early 2019, he began his journey with Free Your Voice, a youth advocacy group that focuses on human rights and the struggle for environmental justice. 

Carlos and his colleagues helped to form the South Baltimore Community Land Trust which is a tool used to address the vacant and blighted land that we see throughout the city. In addition, Carlos and the other members of Free Your Voice were instrumental in the creation of the very first Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste which places an emphasis on equity and ensuring underserved communities are no longer dumping grounds. 

From his involvement, Carlos has been actively advocating for and testifying at city council hearings about the need to end incineration in Baltimore City and pursue a Zero Waste Future.  Carlos has always been a leader in his community and continues to advocate for clean air, which is a human right.   

Carlos has been featured in various films including Unbreathable and most recently was featured in the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) Master Zero Waste Plan video.