Lizet Mejía is a young Andean environmental engineer and climate activist from Huaraz in the Ancash region of Peru. She currently serves as a project coordinator at Qinti Peru, where she supports the restoration of high Andean ecosystems through community-, youth- and gender-centered approaches.
Her work focuses on restoring queñual (Polylepis) forests, which are vital ecosystems for water security, Andean biodiversity and climate resilience. This work is increasingly important as glacier retreat and increasing forest fires impact landscapes. Lizet integrates ecological restoration, citizen science, environmental education, ancestral knowledge and art as tools for social transformation. She has worked closely with communities, rural youth and women to advance locally-led restoration processes. In 2025, she was recognized as a FAO Young Forest Champion and received the Youth4Climate Award for the Manka Warmis project. She is a co-founder of Trenzando MinkAyni, sub-coordinator of the Huascarán Biosphere Reserve Youth Network, a member of the Mountain Youth Hub and a conservation advocate for Huascarán National Park.
