Juan Manuel studied Philosophy and Social Sciences at the Western Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESO) in Guadalajara, Mexico. He volunteered in shelters for Central American migrants in southeastern Mexico and with communities of indigenous migrants in the Metropolitan Area of Guadalajara. He participated in the # YoSoy132 movement and currently coordinates Quality Policy and Democracy in Horizontes Creativos, an incubator of social innovation experiences in Comalcalco, Tabasco, Mexico. He helps communities to co-create real and creative alternatives for a more dignified future in the context of environmental devastation and paternalism caused by the oil industry, agribusiness, paternalism and neoliberal policies.