Cristine Gollayan - WAGMI Women of the Week
Cristine Gollayan - Senior Manager, Global Cyber Security at SONY
Cristine Gollayan is a Senior Manager for Sony’s Global Information Security Department, deploying security tools and programs throughout Sony's Operating Companies. An avid STEM advocate, she was part of a STEM program for the Verizon Foundation and now currently serves on the Board for Women in Technology, as well as serves on the Board for STEM For Her. Cristine was also featured on Washington Life Magazine’s Top Tech Innovators and Disruptors.
Outside of work, Cristine is active in the Washington DC area attending events that support local charities and women-owned businesses. She constantly networks for female and youth empowerment in the community and has judged for the Miss America and Miss World organizations.
Q. What was the first coin you bought?
Well, I am certainly a newbie at this and still have not purchased an NFT. I have however researched and fell into a lot of interest in World of Women (worldofwomen.art) in OpenSea as they celebrate diversity and inclusivity. Currently loving #2851 since it represents femininity paired with power but there are so many to choose from, it’s quite hard to pick just one. As far as coin, researching into coinbase as I guess that is the best one for beginners.
Q. If you were gifted $1k, what coin or NFT would you be buying more of?
I am part of STEM For Her and earlier this year they raffled off an Ada Lovelace NFT. Would have loved to have won that piece. Additionally, I love the content creators with purpose and as I am such a huge advocate for inspiring the next gen, I would buy collections from the following: WomenRise who celebrate female scientists, activists, artists, and coders. In addition to creating NFT’s they are also a movement for women’s rights and girls’ education. Others are Women and Weapons (WAW) that showcase women in the 20th century when women were not viewed as powerful. Overall, I would buy collections from various groups with the purpose of inspiring young girls as well as collections created by this next generation.
Q. What got you into crypto investing?
Again, not an investor just yet but still doing my research. Thank goodness I have had the privilege to meet Anastasia and Tahera from @wcoinetwork, and @ryan.mcney from @web3dc to help navigate my journey. I know it is still new to many and I love being in the forefront on technology. I started my career coding in Cobol, Telecom consulting, and have landed in the Cyber world. So I think learning the Crypto arena is next for me!
Q. What is a piece of advice you would like to give to others that are just starting out?
Again, from @ryan.mcney, it’s “DYOR”. Do your own research. There is so much noise out that to unravel and it is so important to research and ensure the information you are reading is accurate. He also recommended the book “Digital Gold” and it has helped a lot with the background story of this entire field. Also, I suggest attending networking events and putting yourself out there. There is so much to learn from others.
Q. Favorite influencer that we should follow?
For crypto/Web3, I absolutely love @femmefinancenyc. She’s a fellow Pinay (shoutout to the Philippines ), smart and really breaks down tough terms for you. She has great content to not only educate, but also inspire her community. I also love to learn more about mental strength. It helped me a lot during Covid and I try to continue to expand on my learning. Authors are James Clear “Atomic Habits”, Ed Mylett “The Power of One More”, Admiral William H. McRaven “Make Your Bed”, and Thibaut Meurisse “Master your Emotions”.
Q. Is anything else happening with your own project that our community should know about?
I am actually a part of Women in Technology in DC (womenintechnology.org) and was recently President with my tenure ending in July 2022. I am still on the Board as Immediate Past President and our mission is to advance girls and women in the field of technology from the classroom to the boardroom. We do this with networking events, educational forums, hosting job fairs, Female Leadership Awards, and hosting WIT.Connects (which is our version of TedTalks). Come January 2023, I will be Chairing STEM For Her (stemforher.org), an organization which focuses more on middle school and high school girls. Its mission is to promote education to create awareness and opportunities for successful STEM-related careers, with a strong focus on the underserved population on the Washington DC metro area. I encourage all to take a look at these, as I would love to incorporate Web3, Coin, NFT, Metaverse in the organizations. I appreciate the spotlight as there are so many ways we, as women, can be a part of and create the future. My motto is to inspire girls and empower women and I think we as a community can certainly come together and do just that.
