Jose Quisocala
A bank for children’s education
About
At 7 years old, Jose Quisocala founded Banco del Estudiante Bartselena, a circular economy bank that aims to empower underprivileged children while protecting the environment.
The bank’s principle is simple: children whose parents can’t afford to feed them or send them to school can collect waste from local households, shops, and businesses. When they bring the waste to the bank, they receive money on their debit card, which allows them to feed themselves and attend school. Banco del Estudiante Bartselena then sells the waste to recycling companies.
Work
Through the Banco del Estudiante Bartselena, Jose Quisocala and his team collect 5 tons of paper per month, saving trees from being felled for paper. The vision of a 7-year-old boy has become a triple-impact project – social, economic, and environmental. It has grown from 20 members to 8,000 ranging from 7- to 18-year-olds, and has garnered attention from the likes of VISA, as well as countries around the world who’d like to replicate the model.