Cristina Fernandez

Cristina focuses on integrating knowledge from the various programs and communities of the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN). In this role at the GEN headquarters, she forges collaboration with nonfinancial partners.

Previously, she was Vice President for Research and Policy at GEN, focusing on integrating public officials into startup ecosystems across the world, creating platforms for them to exchange ideas with other nations’ policymakers to identify the best ways to unleash entrepreneurship. By forging and coordinating the Startup Nations policy community, Cristina has liaised closely with policymakers and policy advisors in 100+ countries.

Before joining the leadership team at Global Entrepreneurship Network, Cristina was a Research Analyst at the Kauffman Foundation, and Operations Manager for a Millennium Challenge Corporation-funded project in Paraguay, and at a personal care imports multinational in Brazil. She was also a consultant for an international patent and trademark law firm that helps foreign entrepreneurs enter the growing Paraguayan market.

Cristina was trained as an economist and political scientist at the University of Kansas and received a Master’s in International Trade and Investment Policy from the George Washington University School of International Affairs. She speaks English, Spanish, Portuguese, and some German and French.