Ms. Sofía Monsalve Suárez

Ms. Sofía Monsalve Suárez (Colombia) was appointed Special Rapporteur on the right to food by the Human Rights Council at its 61st session, in March 2026 and took up her functions on 1 May 2026.

Hailing from the Colombian Andes, she now lives in the German Odenwald and holds a research position at the Heidelberg Institute of Global Health. With an academic background in philosophy and political science, Sofía brings decades of experience at the intersection of human rights, food systems, and social justice. For 25 years, she worked with FIAN International, a human rights organization dedicated to the right to food and nutrition. She has long-standing expertise in supporting grassroots social movements to defend their right to food and related rights, alongside extensive knowledge of the UN human rights system, the FAO, and the UN Committee on World Food Security (CFS). She has also collaborated closely with leading universities across multiple countries and was a member of the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food).