Cecilia earned a master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Bologna with a thesis focused on environmental crimes in Europe. She then specialized on sustainable development and natural resources at SIOI (Italian Society for International Organization). She worked for the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on arctic affairs and for the Italian Ministry of the Environment on international cooperation for sustainable development. She currently works for A Sud, a non-profit association dealing with environmental conflicts, community rights, justice, sustainability and climate change.