Ella Fontanals-Cisneros is a philanthropist, entrepreneur and collector of contemporary art. She began collecting art in the 1970s and her collection, which today has more than 2500 works, has an international profile with emblematic figures of modern and contemporary art with a focus on Latin American art. She is also cofounder of CIFO, a non-profit organization that fosters cultural exchange and enrichment of the arts. In this position, she recently worked to launch the CIFO-Ars Electronica Awards (in partnership with Ars Electronica) to advance the work of Latin American artists working with new media and technology, an underfunded area of production.