Rebeca is a doctoral candidate at the Central European University in Vienna. Her research interests center around youth involvement with harm reduction and drug use in recreational settings and micro-level drug policymaking. Rebeca is originally from Brazil, and brings extensive experience as a practitioner and consultant in the field. She has volunteered with the Human Rights NGO IDDD, contributing to advocacy campaigns denouncing police violence and the gendered impacts of national drug legislation. Additionally, Rebeca has worked as a harm reduction technician with NGO Kosmicare in Lisbon, Portugal, and later as a Policy Coordinator at Unite Global Parliamentarians Network. In this role, she led parliamentary advocacy efforts for drug policy reform in partnership with the Open Society Foundations. Rebeca remains an active member of the Portuguese Treatment Action Group (GAT), the Citizens’ Initiative for Cannabis Legalization in Portugal, and the International Working Group of Youth RISE, an international network of young people who use drugs advocating for drug policy reform and full spectrum harm reduction. Moreover, Rebeca is the co-founder and former co-director of the CEU Student Think Tank. In 2023, Rebeca received the CEU's Presidential Scholar Award, which recognizes the work of students whose research shows promise for the next generation.
