Juliana Castilla

Youth climate leader behind Colombia's landmark environmental lawsuit

Juliana Castilla is a Colombian environmental activist whose legal battle against deforestation in the Amazon has become a global reference in climate litigation. At age 14, she filed the historic Castilla vs. Colombia case in 2018, arguing that rampant illegal mining and logging violated her constitutional rights to a healthy environment and life. The lawsuit led to Colombia's Supreme Court ordering a nationwide moratorium on new mining permits until sustainability standards were met. This landmark ruling (No. 5775 of 2018) mandated the creation of a National Plan for the Amazon's Protection, involving youth representatives in policy decisions. Castilla co-founded the Youth Amazon Network, training 2,000+ young leaders in 8 countries to use legal strategies for environmental protection. Her work inspired the 《Amazon Rising》 documentary series. She was instrumental in passing Colombia's 2020 Youth Climate Law, requiring environmental impact assessments to consider intergenerational equity. Castilla's advocacy is detailed in 《Defending the Amazon: Youth Resistance》.