He held several senior positions at Vale, including global head of corporate affairs. He served as legal advisor to Brazil's Foreign Trade Secretary, consultant to the Organization of American States, and international associate at the World Trade Organization. He is also a former member of Royal Dutch Shell's External Review Committee on Sustainability. Rafael is an attorney and holds a master's degree in law of international economic relations, and an LLM in international economic law. He was a visiting scholar at Georgetown University and fellow of the Institute of International Economic Law, in Washington, DC.