Spirit Cultural Exchange is proud to announce Leilany Fuentes-Garcia as the recipient of the 2025 Spirit Cultural Exchange Scholar Award. Leilany, a junior at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, is majoring in Sustainable Design in the College of Fine and Applied Arts. As a first-generation college student, Leilany has demonstrated outstanding academic achievement, leadership, and a strong commitment to sustainability and community empowerment.
The Spirit Cultural Exchange American Scholar Award, launched in 2024, provides a $5,000 scholarship to support outstanding American students in their pursuit of an international or other cultural exchange experience. This scholarship aims to provide meaningful global learning opportunities to American students who may not otherwise have the financial means to participate.
Leilany’s cultural exchange experience will take place in Puerto Rico as part of the Community-Based Sustainable Design program at Casa Pueblo, an initiative dedicated to promoting community self-reliance and energy independence in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico. Through this program, Leilany will collaborate with local organizations and residents on grassroots sustainability initiatives, integrating cultural, scientific, and artistic practices to advance energy justice, economic activity, and public space design.
“Being able to immerse myself within a study abroad program is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to expand my worldview and bring new insights back to my community and my work as a designer,” says Leilany. “By engaging with Casa Pueblo’s grassroots efforts, I hope to expand my knowledge of innovative and sustainable practices that I can carry forward in my future career as a designer dedicated to equity and sustainability.”
Leilany’s dedication to sustainability and community-driven design aligns perfectly with the mission of the Spirit Scholar Award. Through her time in Puerto Rico, she will gain valuable hands-on experience in sustainable urban planning and deepen her understanding of how community engagement plays a critical role in design and development.
As part of her scholarship responsibilities, she will document her journey in a reflective blog post, sharing her experiences, lessons learned, and the impact of her cultural exchange.
Spirit Cultural Exchange is honored to support Leilany in this transformative opportunity and looks forward to seeing how her experience in Puerto Rico will shape her future as a leader in sustainable design and community advocacy.
About Spirit Cultural Exchange
Spirit Cultural Exchange is a leading international exchange organization committed to facilitating meaningful people-to-people cultural exchange experiences. Spirit Cultural Exchange strives to create opportunities for individuals to connect, learn, and grow on a global scale.