Alto Mayo, Peru—A groundbreaking plan to sustainably and profitably invest in Peru’s rural development has revealed an innovative approach that could yield 2:1 returns for backers.
A pilot study in the Alto Mayo landscape of northern Peru found that a multi-phase investment of $67 million in sustainable agriculture, conservation, and infrastructure improvements across the landscape could yield returns of $135 million over 20 years.
“This report not only outlines the immense economic and environmental benefits of implementing this strategy, it reveals the potential to reap twice the returns,” said Percy Summers, senior director of science and development for Conservation International-Peru. “This is an essential step in garnering genuine interest from the private and public sectors to jointly invest in proposed sustainability initiatives in Alto Mayo.”
The 1000 Landscapes for 1 Billion People initiative partners Conservation International, EcoAgriculture Partners, and Capital Continuum Advisers developed the new landscape finance strategy in collaboration with civil society and the San Martin regional government where Alto Mayo is located.
The Alto Mayo landscape is a global hotspot for biodiversity and already a bright point for effective, collaborative sustainable development. Since 2022, the regional government has implemented a holistic low-emission rural development strategy (LERDS), which targets environmentally and socially responsible avenues for regional development and private investment. Still, the landscape’s rich natural resources and biodiversity remain threatened by the expansion of road infrastructure and land degradation from unsustainable agriculture and livestock production.
If fully implemented, the new landscape finance strategy has the potential to support farmers’ transition to more sustainable agricultural practices on more than 300 square kilometers of farmland, reinforce effective management of almost 1,910 square kilometers of conservation areas, and ensure road improvements take place only where economic impact is maximized at the lowest levels of deforestation.
The Green Halo Offers a Brighter Future
A cornerstone of the finance strategy is considering landscapes through a Green Halo lens, which integrates conservation, road infrastructure, and agricultural production to balance rural development with natural resource protection.
In this model, investments are assessed for their economic and environmental impacts. More sustainable agricultural practices incorporating agroforestry and diversified systems can take root through a combination of technical assistance, grant finance, and private investment. This approach can improve farmer profits over the medium and longer term, help farmers adapt to climate change, and reduce deforestation. Conservation and restoration efforts are backed by long-term protected-area funding and appropriate market revenues, and road improvements are carried out only where there are high economic returns and lower environmental consequences.
In more ways than one, the benefits of this approach outweigh the costs. With the right initial support from government, development, and philanthropic funding, agroforestry-based cocoa and coffee systems could increase farmer earnings up to six times over 20 years. Further investment in farmer technical training, expanded extension services, and climate risk insurance could support the de-risking of and transition to private capital investment.
Propelling Private Capital for Landscape Resilience
A key innovation of this finance strategy is its approach to mobilizing private capital through the Capital Continuum framework. This approach outlines how early-stage capital from philanthropic funds, public finance, and development bank guarantees can reduce investment risks to attract commercial investors and supply chain investments along a continuum of capital needs, risks, and return profiles. The plan envisions Alto Mayo’s gradual transition from initial reliance on public and philanthropic funding to 70% private capital in later stages. This approach offers a replicable blueprint for scaling this type of blended finance that could be used in other landscapes.
“Regions like Alto Mayo face chronic budget pressure,” said Karin Berardo, managing partner of Capital Continuum Advisers and study co-author. “Finding ways to attract large-scale investments across sectors while breaking down barriers to accessing those investments is essential to the landscape’s sustainability.”
The Alto Mayo finance strategy offers a global model for implementing integrated finance at a landscape scale. It demonstrates the potential to attract and deploy meaningful investments that could inspire broader conservation and rural development efforts worldwide.
“Our work in Alto Mayo demonstrates how these landscape finance development processes can be structured to balance economic prosperity and ecological resilience everywhere,” said Juan Ramos, senior manager of finance and policy at EcoAgriculture Partners and a study co-author. “The insights from Alto Mayo aren’t just about structuring finance; they’re about rethinking risk, interconnections, and what’s truly needed for sustainability at scale.”
Read the full report here.
For more information on the Alto Mayo landscape finance strategy or the 1000 Landscapes for One Billion People Landscape Finance Accelerator, contact abruner@conservation.org, psummers@conservation.org, jramos@ecoagriculture.org, or sshames@ecoagriculture.org.
