Although Karina Garcés-Mirza (Class of 2002, Ecuador) grew up surrounded by the mountains of her country’s Andean highlands, she has lived in Glasgow—Scotland’s largest city—for nearly two decades. And now, it is the place she calls home. Karina was a curious and restless young woman; while she was studying at EARTH University as an agricultural engineer, she connected deeply with many of the rural communities surrounding the Guácimo Campus. In her third year, she traveled halfway across the globe to conduct her professional Internship at the American University of Beirut in Lebanon. She was not yet 20, but her mind was already filled with the call of the world. Being exposed to other realities sparked an enduring vocation: to care for life in all its forms.
Upon graduation, Karina was selected to participate in the World Youth Congress in Morocco—an experience that proved transformative. For several weeks, Karina lived alongside young people from across the globe who shared the same drive: to be agents of change. They debated, but they also rolled up their sleeves and engaged in community work. “That’s where I understood this could become a profession, that there was space to build a future around sustainability,” she recalls.
Back in Ecuador, Karina put her learning into action: she promoted community projects, led a waste management program, worked with children in rural schools, and designed an agro-educational farm called Tierra Viva. New opportunities kept opening up; she was invited once again to the World Youth Congress, this time in Scotland, where she discovered The University of Stirling, one of the few schools offering a master’s degree in Sustainable Development.
That is how Glasgow became her home. There, Karina both started a family and began a career in public service. Working with the UK government, she has contributed to multiple projects on urban regeneration, green spaces, and sustainable infrastructure—always guided by the same vision that began in her childhood, when she dreamed of dedicating her life to understanding and protecting nature.
Her first major challenge was the Step Up Project, a program run in partnership with various European Union cities that shaped the Sustainable Energy Action Plan (SEAP)—Glasgow’s energy roadmap for 2014–2025. “That plan was key because it wasn’t just about talking about energy, electricity, or gas, but about embedding sustainability: Where do our sources come from? What about greenhouse gases? How do we recycle energy? It meant bringing a global vision down to a concrete plan, with goals, deadlines, and defined sectors,” she explains.
That experience laid the foundation for her current work: the Avenues Programme, a project aiming to transform central Glasgow into a greener, more accessible, and more resilient city. Karina is responsible for five historic avenues where water gardens, green corridors, segregated cycle lanes, and wide pedestrian areas are being introduced. Victorian drainage infrastructure no longer meets current needs, so new systems act as reservoirs that capture, filter, and store rainwater—preventing floods while nourishing trees and green areas.
This urban redesign is being developed with strong community participation and cultural components that enable an inclusive and collaborative transition between residents and their shared spaces. “Sometimes people think that the more car lanes, the more developed a place is. But having a green city with space for pedestrians, cyclists, and people with diverse abilities is also development—and it’s a way of adapting to and mitigating climate change.”
The Avenues Programme will not only change the face of the city but will also set the groundwork for how urban areas can prepare for climate change. For Karina, it is also about leaving a legacy. “We may not see an investment of this scale again for decades. It’s a privilege to be here now, helping prepare the city for the future.” For her, the project has also been an exercise in humility—learning from other professionals, such as urban designers, civil engineers, and architects. This multidisciplinary work has broadened her perspective, much like when she was 18 and life took her from place to place to learn, grow, and reach her full potential.
Although her everyday landscape has shifted from Ecuador’s Andean mountains to Scotland’s Victorian buildings, her passion for sustainable development remains unshakable. Wherever she is, Karina tends to life with dedication and care.