Evo Morales took control of Bolivia in 2006. For the following 20 years, he and his fellow socialists stifled free markets — and dissent — so thoroughly that, said SFL’s Luis Gustavo Cuellar Avaroma, “Not many serious organizations can exist in the political space.”

But, he continued, “We at SFL take things very seriously. We have installed a culture that keeps people motivated, that keeps reminding people: Bolivia risks becoming the next Venezuela if we don’t do something.”

Students For Liberty’s Bolivian team, and Luis in particular, DID do something. Starting in 2019, they began working in Bolivia’s biggest cities, like Santa Cruz, Cochabamba, and La Paz to educate young people about the dangers of socialism.

Slowly but surely, and eschewing any affiliation with political parties, they built a network of more than 80 volunteers throughout the country. Through Covid, through inflation, and even as Morales’s ideas and influence seemed more entrenched than ever, they hosted events to discuss free markets, as well as book clubs and debates.

That work gave SFL Bolivia a reputation as one of the few serious political organizations in the country. And in 2025, an election year, Luis and the Bolivia team mobilized that reputation: They helped plan 330 events that attracted 7,890 people across the country.

Biggest of all were the public debates they hosted in July of that year. The first hosted the eight candidates for vice president. They were grilled about how — and whether — they understood and were committed to the ideas of individual freedom.

“I was nervous,” Luis said, “to organize those. Not necessarily because of the threat of violence, but because of all the logistical hurdles … last-minute cancellations and confirmations, it was a lot. I mean, I’m just a normal guy from Santa Cruz. The first person in my family who’s not an engineer. But I knew we could do it because SFL had shown us the way.”  

There were a lot more people in attendance than Luis expected, too: a jampacked auditorium with a capacity for 200, and 200 MORE who stood outside, cramming their necks and ears to hear the debate, even though the event was televised and carried live on social media.

“That proved to me how much enthusiasm we had generated around these ideas,” Luis said. “And we kept going.”

Another debate, this time among senatorial candidates, was similarly successful — both in terms of attendance and, ultimately, at the ballot box. A centrist, not a leftist, won Bolivia’s presidency. Although it’s hard to say how many votes Students For Liberty’s events encouraged or swayed, there’s no doubt: SFL contributed to the result.

“The system of government, obviously, it still continues,” Luis said. “Bolivia did not become The Land of the Free overnight. But after 20 years of Morales, this is a huge step forward.”

And, Luis continued, “I’m far from finished.”

He earned his degree in December 2025 from the Universidad Autónoma Gabriel René Moreno, and became an intern for SFL’s Latin America staff while he develops a portfolio for a future career in political science, research, and marketing.

In the meantime, he’s developing and implementing an Impact Project called Free Horizons: It will select 40 students out of hundreds of applicants from high schools in Bolivia for a 30-day summer school program. They’ll learn law, philosophy, technology and public speaking — all from a classical liberal perspective, and all with an eye on continuing the momentum toward capitalism that Luis and Co. have established in Bolivia.

“SFL and the ideas of liberty opened doors to the world for me,” he said. “And now, I just want to do the same for others in Bolivia and beyond.”