Guillermo Castilleja is a senior fellow at the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. As an advisor to the president, Guillermo focuses on both internal analytics and external relations—providing foresight and judgement to aid in identifying future directions, as well as opportunities to elevate the foundation’s and grantees’ achievements.
Previously, Guillermo served for more than five years at the helm of the foundation’s Environmental Conservation Program, leading its efforts to protect critical ecosystems and balance long-term conservation with sustainable use.
Before joining the foundation in 2010, Guillermo worked for World Wildlife Fund-International (WWF), most recently as executive director for conservation. In that capacity, he directed and coordinated its global conservation efforts, leading the development of global priorities for the network, overseeing implementation of its activities and monitoring progress. He has also worked for the World Bank and the National Wildlife Federation.
Guillermo currently chairs the steering committee for the Global Alliance for the Future of Food, a coalition of foundations dedicated to improving the sustainability, security and equity food systems. Guillermo also serves on The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) Advisory Board and the boards of the Climate and Land Use Alliance and the Fondo Mexicano Para La Conservación De La Naturaleza, A.C./Mexican Fund for the Conservation of Nature, A.C. (FMCN). Previously, Guillermo was a member of Mexico’s National Commission on Protected Areas and the National Forestry Commission, as well as the Board of Directors for WWF Russia. Through speaking engagements around the world, research published in peer-reviewed journals and the media, Guillermo has addressed topics including the relationship between protected areas and food security, strategies for long-term financing of large-scale land conservation, and the social opportunities and challenges of biodiversity conservation.
Guillermo graduated from the National University of Mexico and received a Master’s degree in Forestry, a Master’s degree in Philosophy and a doctorate in Forest Ecology from Yale University.