The event seeks to highlight the state’s opportunities to attract capital that promotes gender equality, sustainability and poverty reduction.
This Monday, the third edition of the international Latimpacto conference began in Oaxaca, which promotes investments with social and environmental impact in Latin America. This event, which is being held in Mexico for the first time, seeks to generate alliances between the public, private and social sectors, Carolina Suárez, CEO of Latimpacto, and Olivia Vadillo, director of Latimpacto Mexico, told El Economista.
The choice of the venue was triggered by the characteristics of the state and its commitment to sustainability. 650 representatives from 25 countries are expected to attend. “We always look for places that reflect the connection with communities and the environment. Oaxaca is the heart of Mesoamerican culture, a place where social actors can truly understand the territory and see the opportunities to generate impact.”
Vadillo highlighted that Oaxaca, often marginalized in terms of investment, is actually a state with a great commitment to sustainable development, “in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, the state government has established international alliances and is accurately measuring the impact of its programs, with more than 240 indicators focused on issues such as gender equality, environmental sustainability and poverty reduction,” she added.
For Latimpacto, collaboration with local authorities, especially with the Secretariat of Economic Development, has been crucial, “facilitating visits to communities and supporting the realization of the event,” where the entity will also promote new strategies in education, culture and the environment, agreed the interviewees.
Among the activities of the conference is the visit to local projects, selected by the Oaxaca Community Foundation, such as artisan workshops “these visits allow participants to learn firsthand how a real impact can be generated in the communities, thus strengthening the relationships of trust necessary for future investments,” explained the director.
Priority to the environment
During the conference, Latimpacto will present the launch of four investment funds that have been the result of previous discussions and agreements at other international conferences. “We are launching a green fund, one focused on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), another on the silver economy and one on culture that seek to scale impact projects that were generated at previous conferences, such as those held in Cartagena and Brazil,” said Suárez.
Although these funds are intended for Latin America in general, Mexico has a prominent place. The STEM fund, for example, has a special focus on Mexico and Brazil, while the green fund seeks to protect Amazonian ecosystems and Mexican biodiversity. “Biodiversity in Mexico is immense, and the investment potential in these sectors is enormous,” stressed Vadillo.
Latimpacto is characterized by being disruptive and innovative, “it is not the typical conference where you listen to a speaker and leave with more questions than answers (…) Here, what we seek is to generate real conversations between the different social, public and private actors, to identify common problems and solutions that can be replicated throughout Latin America,” he added.
Latimpacto is focused on building a connected Latin American community that promotes long-term projects and not merely commercial transactions. “We are not here to close corporate contracts, but to generate long-term impact that benefits both people and the environment,” concluded Suárez.
Source: eleconomista
