A young Argentine leader in sustainability will represent Latin America at the UN for the next two years.
He is Martín Vázquez Jones, the 30-year-old political scientist who co-founded the NGO Río Sustentable.
He was selected from over 33,000 applications from 150 countries for his work in the recovery of the Suquía River in Córdoba.
The United Nations Organization (UN) appointed him last December as one of the 17 Young Leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals.
In particular, this young leader in sustainability will advocate for Sustainable Development Goal number six, focused on clean water and sanitation.
From the “plastic forest” to international activism
Vázquez Jones was born and raised meters from the Suquía River, where he played as a child. After living for two years in Australia, he returned to Córdoba during the pandemic.
However, the reunion with the river impacted him: it was dirty, full of waste, and turned into a “plastic forest”, as he described.
“Melbourne changed my mindset. I learned that nature must be respected, but also cared for,” said this young leader in sustainability in an interview with El País.
Therefore, the young man began organizing clean-up brigades with childhood friends, adding more people to each event.
These actions gave rise to Río Sustentable, which today mobilizes hundreds of volunteers for the “ecosystem restoration of the Suquía River through community actions.”
The results of Vázquez Jones’ territorial work, the young Argentine leader in sustainability
In five years, the environmental collective managed to restore 5,000 meters of riverbanks and plant 10,000 native trees. In the first year, they repeatedly removed tons of garbage, fighting against floods that brought new waste.
To professionalize the project, Vázquez Jones moved to Costa Rica and then to Norway. In the Central American country, he coordinated the volunteering at the Cabo Blanco Absolute Natural Reserve.
“In Córdoba, we only had a brand on Instagram and a couple of shovels that had been donated to us,” explained the young leader in sustainability.
Upon returning, he realized that territorial work was insufficient and embarked on “digital activism” to make the care of the river go viral.
The hidden water crisis
With more than 100,000 followers on TikTok, Martín denounced illegal water discharges from sewers from buildings and factories in the urban center.
“I am not against real estate development, as long as the law is respected and waste is not dumped into the water,” he stated.
Studies from the Aquatic Pollution Research Laboratory of the National University of Córdoba (UNC), published in 2025, revealed worrying data:
- 80% of fish contain microplastics in their digestive system
- Synthetic and semi-synthetic textile fibers like cellulose predominate
- Pesticides, pharmaceuticals, and microplastics are recorded in water bodies
The Suquía River originates at the outlet of Lake San Roque and flows 200 kilometers later into the Mar Chiquita lagoon. This internationally important wetland is protected by the Ramsar Convention, making the crisis a global biodiversity issue.
The young Argentine leader in sustainability demand political participation
“Young people inherit the worst of the climate crisis, environmental management, and resource availability, with the injustice that we are not part of the decision-making process,” emphasized Vázquez Jones.
The young leader in sustainability believes that grassroots activism is insufficient if it does not translate into public policies and laws.
“Young people are the engine of change, we must be at the tables where decisions are made,” he affirmed.
His latest action began on January first: a 365-day challenge to clean bottles and other waste from the riverbed. He documents the task daily through his TikTok account.
“I will not be a spectator. I bet on mobilizing to propose solutions to the current crisis,” concluded this young leader in sustainability who will represent Argentina before UN agencies.
