Christine De La Rosa
CEO & Co-Founder
The People's Ecosystem
Christine is the CEO and National Co-Founder of The People’s Ecosystem, Founder & Fund Manager of The People’s Group.
Christine De La Rosa was recently named to the Cannabis50 list as one of Game Changers in the cannabis industry. She was appointed to the California Cannabis Advisory Committee which provides valuable input to the Department of Cannabis Control on the development of regulations and standards. She is the Chair of the DEI and Access 2 Capital Committee for the Council of Federal Cannabis Regulation. She sits on the Board of the National Cannabis Industry Association and is the former chair of their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. She is the lead author of Gender Parity in the C-Suite and co-author of Pathways to Equity Ownership in the Cannabis Industry as part of the Gender Equity Cannabis White Papers. She has advised both local, state, and federal governments across the US on social equity and access to capital in cannabis, as well as written position papers for New York, California, and Arizona with recommendations on their legalization and implementation of cannabis regulation. Additionally, she serves as part of the New York Cannabis Industry Association Special Advisor Group – Social and Economic Equity and Social Justice.
She was named one of the 9 Notable Hispanic & Latino Professionals in Cannabis in 2023, 22 Cannabis Leaders Who Will Shape the Industry in 2022, in 2021 she was on the list for 10 Women to watch out for: Industry luminaries and rising stars, and in 2020 one of 35 Most Influential Women in Cannabis in 2020. As a thought leader and one of the most sought after advisors in the cannabis industry she sits on the advisory boards of Lift Events, Tetragram, Cannabis Doing Good, Nourish and Bloom, Lila Luckies and Maison Bloom.
Christine spent 20+ years as a systems and database architect in the telecom. Throughout her entire career she straddled the worlds between corporate and community. She is a social entrepreneur who has spent her adult life building businesses that creatively engage and employ the local communities that surround them. She has owned and operated along with her business partners two restaurants, three event production companies in two states, an art gallery and a retail outlet prior to embarking on her cannabis journey. A history in technology, business consulting and entrepreneurship were part of the trajectory that led to co-owning cannabis businesses in both California and New Mexico. She is a well-respected business leader, advocate, and activist in the cannabis industry.
Christine is passionate about the industry that saved her life. At the top of her tech career, she almost died from complications of undiagnosed Lupus. In 2015, she found cannabis as an alternative medicine to treat her lupus. No longer bound to 11 pills a day or monthly infusions, she was inspired by her experience to open The People’s Dispensary in 2016, along with her co-founders, to help those who most need access to cannabis. Together they continue to grow their multi-state supply chain footprint, product line and build a fiercely sought-after national social equity model and enterprise now known as The People’s Ecosystem.
Christine holds a B.F.A from the University of North Texas and an M.A. from the University of Texas at Dallas.