Buen Vivir Capital Institute

Alicia DeLia is an Afro-Indigenous economist, entrepreneur and fundraiser who has spent her career building social enterprises & unlocking capital for leaders who too often go unseen—mobilizing more than $100 million of philanthropy and investments across Latin America, Africa, and the United States. Her work challenges traditional models of capital allocation, advancing integrated and reparative approaches to finance grounded in dignity, trust, and long-term sustainability.

Her work is deeply personal. As the Washington DC born daughter of a Cameroonian chief (her father) and a working-class Salvadoran immigrant to the United States (her mother), Alicia witnessed first-hand both access and privilege as well as systemic inequality and discrimination. She also saw the needs, limitations, unbound talent and entrepreneurial fervor of people and communities across Africa, Latin America and the United States all her life. Her formative years inspired and informed her career connecting capital to enterprises and social movements, and shaped a way of thinking and living that sought to make sense of both wealth and poverty—neither romanticizing nor condemning either, but instead desiring to be a bridge builder across worlds– helping to foster authentic & transformative partnerships between those on either end of the spectrum. In 2025, Alicia founded the Buen Vivir Capital Institute to build a global community dedicated to expanding relational, values-aligned capital for the next generation of social impact leaders and enterprises working toward shared wellbeing and regenerative economies.

Alicia has a graduate degree from New York University in Latin American Economics, is an Aspen Institute Fellow Alumni and is on the Board of Impact Charitable. A proud Washington DC native, she currently resides with her family in El Salvador.

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