Leadership That Stays With You
Roxana Zumba
When Roxy first joined SERES in 2016, she wasn't looking for a life-changing experience. She was a university student from La Loma, a small community in Jujutla, El Salvador, attending on a full scholarship. As part of her academic program, she was invited to participate in an ACTIVATE Congress. She knew very little about SERES. It was simply one more activity.
She never imagined it would become part of her life for the next ten years.
Looking back, Roxy doesn't describe her journey through programs or events. Instead, she speaks about something much more personal.
She found a community where she could belong, grow, and become herself.
"What has impacted me the most over these ten years is being able to share with so many young people in safe spaces. I learned that I could open my mind, express myself, share my opinions, and know that I wouldn't be judged or criticized. At SERES, we have a voice. We have a say."
For Roxy, that sense of belonging became transformative.
As a woman, the opportunity to connect with people from different communities, backgrounds, and cultures expanded her perspective in ways she never expected. Building relationships—especially with other women—helped her discover that leadership is also about listening, learning from others, and growing together.
Each encounter became an invitation to see herself differently.
One experience, in particular, changed the way she understood leadership. After participating in several programs, Roxy returned to one of SERES' annual Sustainability Summits —not as a participant, but as a volunteer. For the first time, she experienced everything from behind the scenes. Supporting facilitators, helping participants, responding to unexpected situations, and ensuring every detail came together required a different kind of leadership.
"Being backstage marked me. It allowed me to see everything that happens behind the scenes. I developed my leadership even more, and I learned how to solve conflicts."
2019 SERES Sustainability Summit
What had once been a space where she discovered her own voice gradually became a place where she could help others discover theirs.
That shift—from participant to facilitator, from learner to leader—is one of the transformations that continues to shape her journey.
Today, after nearly a decade with SERES, Roxy still speaks about the future with the same enthusiasm she felt when she first arrived. Except now, her dreams are even bigger.
She imagines contributing to projects at Ulew Fuego, growing vegetables, planting fruit trees, cultivating new ideas, and creating opportunities for others to learn from the land just as she has learned from the people around her.
As she approaches the upper age limit of SERES' youth network, one thought remains with her.
"I'm 35 now, and I know youth is defined as ages 15 to 35. But I still have so many things I want to do with SERES. I feel like I haven't finished yet."
Her words capture something that numbers alone cannot measure. Meaningful leadership does not end when a program concludes—or when someone reaches a certain age. It grows through relationships, purpose, and the desire to continue serving others.
At SERES, we believe that lasting transformation happens when young people find spaces where they are trusted, heard, and encouraged to lead.
Roxy's story reminds us that the greatest impact is not only the projects completed or the skills developed. Sometimes, it is creating a place where someone discovers that their voice matters—and chooses to spend the rest of their life helping others find theirs.
