Juan Carlos Antezana was born and raised in a middle class family in La Paz, Bolivia. His sensitivity and love of animals and children have been evident throughout his life. Since childhood, Juan Carlos has known he wanted to devote his life to the wellbeing of others. He experimented with jobs as a surveyor and analyst at the Ministry of Labor, as an art teacher and as director of an educational radio program, while doing volunteer work with hospitalized mental patients.

After a stint in Ecuador and Peru, Juan Carlos returned to Bolivia and fell in love with the children in the shantytown neighborhoods on the outskirts of La Paz. He organized games and hiking trips for them and taught them how to earn a little money from gardening, repairing shoes and sewing. He quickly became a role model — a role he takes very seriously. Having found his calling, Juan Carlos changed his professional focus to children and youth, taking a job as a Youth Residence director.

In 1992, Juan Carlos founded the Inti Wara Yassi organization. The name comes from the translation of sun, moon and stars, in Quechua, Aymara, and Guarani, which are indigenous Bolivian languages. The organization originally aided poor or orphaned children by teaching them a trade so that they could support themselves and their families. The organization's direction changed slightly when Juan Carlos took the children on a trip along an Incan trail and they saw hundreds of burned trees and found a starving, caged bird. At that moment they decided to take action and the Inti Wara Yassi sanctuary was created.

The main goals of the wildlife sanctuary are to rehabilitate animals that have either been confiscated or abandoned, and to protect the wildlife of the Bolivian rainforest. There are several species of monkey at the sanctuary as well as sloths, pumas, jaguars, toucans and parrots. All personnel are volunteers, both permanent and non-permanent, from all over the world who tend to the animals and educate tourists about their plight.

The children Juan Carlos originally sought out to help are still heavily involved with the organization. They take care of the animals, but also are learning leadership skills, expanding their environmental knowledge and following a path away from drugs and gangs. Inti Wara Yasi's membership continues to grow and has become a national organization.

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