press & Speaker bio
Cristina M. Villegas is a double award-winning mineral value chains leader who focuses on the intersections of sustainability, responsible sourcing, and rural development. She has more than 20 years of experience working with global business, diverse communities, and governments find practical ways to incentivize ‘better business’ in complex environments. She can untangle supply chains, create realistic formalization systems, identify root cause issues, recommend best practice approaches, and bespoke tactical advice. She reveals and emphasizes the people and communities behind our products. In many cases, her work has been transformative.
Cristina’s work and commentary has been featured in Vogue, the Financial Times, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, Wired Magazine, Forbes, and JCK, among others. Every year, she is invited back to the faculty of Columbia University’s Executive Course on Extractives & Development. She is most known for her specialties in critical minerals, jewelry-relevant minerals, and for elevating the profile of women miners, who are one-third of all artisanal and small-scale miners worldwide; a hidden yet enormous population. She co-founded Moyo Gems in 2019 that focuses on women gemstone miners (and their male allies) in East Africa to promote direct trade.
Cristina is a popular speaker, having delivered remarks at the OECD Responsible Minerals Forum opening plenary to international World Bank mining events, Kimberley Process Intersessionals, small and large lecture halls, and beyond. She serves on the board of the Community for Ethical Jewelry (formerly: Ethical Metalsmiths) and serves on the Advisory Committee of the Watch & Jewelry Initiative 2030.
Cristina is currently based in Washington, DC. She has a double BA from UC San Diego and a MSc from the London School of Economics. She has traveled to more than 70 countries.