The life of a human being should be measured and valued by what it does for others. That is what my parents taught me. I have always liked helping people. From a very young age, I joined the Youth Red Cross in my country, Colombia, to help elderly and homeless people. This has brought me much satisfaction, and since joining ISACA as an adult, I have continued fulfilling my mission of teaching and helping others.
Even through the pandemic, I have found ways to continue helping people. Initially the professional courses I planned to teach were suspended, as well as some of my other projects. That affected my finances a bit, but also opened up more opportunities to help people. I led a food collection with my neighbors to support poor families who live near my house in Bogotá, managing to deliver to 38 local markets. I have been able to create a virtual piggybank with my friends to collect money that is distributed monthly to those in need. And I also have also been able to supply computers to needy kids by calling my friends and asking if they had computers in good condition that they no longer needed. Oftentimes, negative events bring opportunities to show what we can do if we put our mind to it.
In my professional life, I have been able to uplift others through my relationship with ISACA. Back when I was a professor of systems auditing at a prestigious university in Colombia, several colleagues and I joined ISACA and created a local chapter to promote good practices, international standards and to adapt the academic curriculum to what is directed by ISACA, so that students and professionals could learn and grow their careers. For me, it has been a great joy to support the Latin American region and assist with COBIT translations, revision manuals and much more. My region needs ISACA publications in Spanish to advance its professional evolution.
I have been an independent consultant since 1998, and through ISACA connections, I have been able to make myself better known in Latin America, initially as a speaker at local and international ISACA events, like LatinCACS, and later through my professional work. I continue to teach in Colombian universities and to support COBIT as a trainer and an assessor. In addition, I was president of the ISACA Bogotá Chapter and later a regional coordinator, finally obtaining my greatest achievement of being an international board director representing Latin America, which was a very enriching experience because I was able to meet and interact with professionals from different countries and cultures, several of whom are still friends. Among my fondest memories is having met Erik Guldentops, a pioneer of COBIT, on one of my trips.
Through it all, I have stayed true to my roots. I love life in the country and animals even though I live in a city of more than 7 million inhabitants. Whenever I can, I enjoy being able to work in the fields on a family farm, a small piece of land located between mountains an hour and a half from Bogotá that my parents left us, and to help protect nature. I have started planting trees, and I hope to have beehives to support pollination and help the growers of vegetables like potatoes, beans and carrots to sell their honey. And lastly, I have two dogs that have taught me what friendship and forgiveness are all about. There are so many ways to make a positive impact, and I am proud to do my part to make the world a better place.