Luis Borja Garcia

Luis wants to turn chocolate green. Our taste for the sweet stuff has a significant impact on the environment, from deforestation caused by large-scale cocoa farming to the carbon emissions caused by a trade that’s estimated to be worth more than a trillion dollars. Luis is working on creating a sustainable, local model that uses the fruit of the carob tree, which is native to the Spanish Levantine coast, instead of cocoa. It’s the perfect substitute, showing all the characteristics of chocolate, with a sweet natural flavor and no need for additives. The young changemaker, who is the founder of the Global Shapers hub in Valencia, is excited about the many benefits: reduced carbon emissions (because his project is local); less water used in the production; no fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides; and an increase in biodiversity in the area.