At 32, Edison Broce is a prominent Panamanian politician, lawyer, and environmental advocate, currently serving as a Parliamentarian (2019-2024) and running for Mayor of Panama. As the Head of the Independent Caucus from 2020 to 2022, he championed impactful, sustainable development policies, including Panama’s first E-Mobility, Recycling, and Single-Use Plastics Ban laws, as well as Tax Incentives for Industrial Recycling, Paper Reduction in the Public Sector, and a Regional Law on Reducing Marine Pollution in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme and the Latin American Parliament.
Since he got elected to parliament, he renounced to all privileges enjoyed by parliamentarians, such as the exemption of the import tax, use of public funds, paid phones, and others. Edison’s academic excellence and visionary leadership earned him prestigious scholarships from the U.S. (Global Ugrad, IVLP) and British (Chevening) governments, the latter funding his master’s in public policy at the University of Oxford.
He is dedicated to youth empowerment, actively supporting young independent candidates who are running for parliament and for local governments, and establishing a public-private alliance granting over 120 scholarships for young people.
He initiated his environmental activism very young. As president of Law School and of the Student’s Federation, he founded the university’s first environmental group that operates to date. Also, in 2018 he launched the ‘No Straw, Please’ Campaign, which helped raise awareness about plastic pollution nationwide.
As an independent, he is required to seek thousands of signatures for 11 months, and the three most signed persons are the ones who can officially become candidates. Edison is currently the most signed independent candidate for Mayor of Panama and is visiting the communities to keep building a strong structure that can compete with political parties. Edison has received national and international recognition, including Outstanding Youth by the Junior Chamber International (2017), one of 30 global youth change-makers by Financial Times (2019, 2020), and one of 8 worldwide young leaders by British Vogue (2020).
His accomplishments reflect his profound commitment to creating a more sustainable future for all.
