Climate action champion is global finalist in Study UK Alumni Awards

Human Rights and Cultural Diversity graduate Luisa Fernanda Bacca is a global finalist in the science and sustainability category of the Study UK Alumni Awards organised by the British Council.

Just 28 global finalists were selected from more than 1,300 applications from around the world. Amazingly this is the 7th year running that University of Essex alumni have secured a prestigious place in the global finals.

Luisa was a Chevening scholar at the University of Essex and has gone on to be a powerful advocate for Indigenous and territorial rights, focusing on fostering agreements between national authorities and Indigenous governments to combat climate change and protect the Amazon.

As Senior Advisor at Gaia Amazonas, she has leveraged her work to amplify Indigenous governance’s impact on climate action. Awarded the Big Bets Climate Fellowship from the Rockefeller Foundation, Luisa is now scaling her efforts across the Amazon Basin and globally, advancing both Indigenous rights and global climate protection.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Frances Bowen said: “We are so proud that Luisa has been named a Global Finalist.

“This is an incredible achievement, and we are delighted to see her work receiving the recognition it deserves on this global platform.”

Luisa said: “Studying at the University of Essex was a transformative experience that profoundly shaped my career. The UK academic environment stood out for its multidisciplinary approach, integrating legal, social, and political perspectives.

“Essex provided a unique platform where theory intersected with real-world application, allowing me to connect my fieldwork with indigenous communities in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru to the academic concepts I was exploring - particularly those surrounding self-determination and cultural inequalities.”