Xitlali Villa

Community Finance Fellow

Xitlali’s background has consistently been in social movements and sovereignty work. Their mission is to support the creation of community-led, sustainable organizations and businesses that address the wellbeing of communities of color while strengthening ownership. Throughout their university years, they have organized with the labor movement and conducted research through the National Science Foundation investigating the community effects of post-industrialism, gentrification, and the service industry in Baltimore City. After university, Xitlali worked in global journalism with TeleSUR in Latin America and received a Fulbright grant to conduct research on community-led journalism and cooperative ethno-tourism in Ecuador and Colombia. Most recently, they have worked with the Black Yield Institute in Baltimore, organizing and coordinating the city’s first Black-led food cooperative.