Viridiana Rios

Viri Ríos is a Mexican journalist and academic. She is a columnist at the European newspaper, El País, and an instructor of U.S.-Mexico politics at Harvard Summer School.

Profiled as a “mover and shaker of Mexico’s civil society” by the British magazine The Economist, Viri is a thought leader, writer and activist that relies on cutting edge data analysis and research journalism to advance an acute understanding of the most pressing social problems of Mexico, and to convey creative solutions to them. Her most recent book, #NoEsNormal. The rigged game that fuels Mexican inequality and how to change it, explores how to create a fair, inclusive, and prosperous Mexico by changing fiscal, labor and competition regulations.

Her academic research has led her to become a visiting assistant professor at Harvard and Purdue University, as well as to receive the American Political Science Association's award for the best public administration dissertation in 2014. As an activist, Viri was selected as a “Young Global Leader 2020” by the World Economic Forum due to her “vision, courage and influence to drive positive change in Mexico”.

Aside from her work as an academic and activist, she regularly works as a private advisor for top public and private leaders, helping them identify, measure, and expose counter-intuitive policy truths using data. She has advised a broad range of public and private sector leaders.

She holds a Ph.D. in government from Harvard University.