The Bigger Risk Is Not to Invest
- Jun 23
- 2 min read
Tuesday, 23rd June 2026
By Paula Perrelli dos Anjos
London Climate Action Week opened with the energy it’s known for: packed rooms and fast‑moving conversations. Yesterday’s event, Financing the Indigenous Bioeconomy, co‑hosted with Practical Action at the National Liberal Club, examined a central question for the region: what is the real risk of investing and what is the risk of not doing so.
AIV’s Co‑Founder and Investment Director, Pajani Singah, brought the discussion to the products that exist only because the forest stands and Indigenous knowledge endures. He pointed to dragon’s blood, a resin with significant commercial potential, and muru muru, now used in high‑end cosmetics in Switzerland. These are not niche curiosities, they are evidence of a forest economy rooted in biodiversity.
But Pajani challenged the room to rethink risk. “When you work in the Amazon, traditional risk frameworks don’t apply.” The real risk, he argued, is failing to invest in livelihoods that keep the forest standing.
Roxana Ramos Delgado, from Practical Action, reminded the audience that the Amazon’s cultural value is inseparable from its economic potential. She shared the story of Yakatheo, a community of more than 700 families in Peru who have cultivated ancestral cacao for over 5,000 years. With blended finance and the right partnerships, they improved cultivation and irrigation systems, unlocking investment and transforming their market position.
She noted that Indigenous communities understand the opportunities but require an enabling environment built on:
access to technology;
strong community organisations;
access to markets;
secure, patient capital.
Alexandra Pinzon, from Global Canopy, emphasised the growing awareness among investors that everything is nature. Data on opportunities is expanding and nature finance is gaining traction, but structural barriers persist. “Philanthropy and government funding must work alongside private capital,” she said, “to build the financial architecture the Amazon needs.” Her message echoed the best sentence of the day: “the bigger risk is not to invest.”
Since 2020, AIV has deployed US$13 million in impact‑linked investments, reaching 5,000+ producers across agroforestry, regenerative agriculture and sustainable NTFP value chains. Our model covers the full value chain, often reaching the “missing middle” of Amazonian SMEs too frequently overlooked by traditional finance. At LCAW2026, our goal is to connect this work with the people and institutions who can help scale it.
#LCAW2026 #ClimateAction #NatureFinance #ImpactInvesting #AmazonBioeconomy #IndigenousEconomies #LondonClimateActionWeek
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