Profile
Hi! I’m Panch, (short for Pancho, though Spanish-speakers call me Francisco). I’m 30 years old, born, raised, and living in Mexico City.
When I’m eating with someone I don’t know, I always ask, “Do you have any food restrictions?”
When I ask that, we often start talking about food. This is my favorite starter for a conversation because what we eat and what we don’t eat says a lot about us. 😀
I am a human rights advocate with a broad experience in promotion, education, youth, and sexual rights.
To realize my work is valuable, as it supports people in navigating healthcare, HIV prevention and treatment. Truly, one of my biggest motivations is to see how certain families support their relatives living with HIV, how they stand next to them whatever happens. This isn’t always the case, so to witness it means so much.
My work affords me continuous self-learning and reflections, in terms of tools, prevention, and communication. Many times I see myself in the troubles, questions, and concerns that people have, and I think, “Damn! I had the same issue — how can I support this person and help them cope?”
I worked on the development of an HIV vaccine.
It is a phase 3 study! Even if this study shows this vaccine doesn’t work, we’re still contributing to an approach within key populations, sharing tools, and linking to healthcare services for people that usually don’t have access to.
I was the coordinator of the Community Education and Engagement unit of the HIV Research Department of the National Institute of Medical Sciences and Nutrition. In the unit, we work on three main lines:
- Community education, which is to share scientific information about HIV and other STDs among the key populations,
- Recruitment into the trials, and
- Retention, to keep those in the studies.
Currently, I’m at the Aids Healthcare Foundation in Mexico, where I am the Prevention Manager. Additionally, I’m an independent consultant for different projects, institutions, and agencies. I was selected to be part of the United Nations Fund of Population in Mexico Youth Advisory Board. There were a total of 20 young people from different regions of my country on this board. I’ve worked with different nonprofit organizations, universities, agencies, and public
Academic Partners
- University of Washington
What reciprocity looks like for me
Be present for people, especially for those who are present for me. It also means understanding the context, resources, and situations of the other person.
Advice I’d tell people inspired to do work that I do
Never stop dreaming (or sleeping). Take care of ourselves is very important!! How can we support other people if we do not take care of ourselves first? Selfcare looks different in each person, but easy practices such as sleep, rest, and eating are quite valuable.
Fun Facts
If I was an animal, I would be …
A cat, because they’re independent and they sleep a lot.
My secret talent is
Cooking
When I was a child, this is what I wanted to be when I grew up …
An architect, because I liked to draw houses.
My favorite book of all time is …
Fruta Verde by Enrique Serna
My favorite place to be is …
Parks, lakes, libraries, and Cineteca Nacional de México