Virgilio is the General Superintendent of the Amazonas Sustainable Foundation (FAS). He holds a degree in Forest Engineering, a PhD in Evolutionary Biology from Harvard University, and a postdoctoral degree in Sustainable Development from the University of Florida. He was the first Secretary of State for the Environment and Sustainable Development of the State of Amazonas, responsible for reducing deforestation by 66% and creating 12 million hectares of conservation units. Currently, he is also a member of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences of the Vatican, coordinator of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network – Amazon (UN-SDSN), an associate professor at the Fundação Dom Cabral, and a member of the Sustainable Economic and Social Development Council (CDESS), an agency created by the President of the Republic.