An Interview with Vanessa Roanhorse, SOCAP25 Advisor on Indigenous-Led Content
At SOCAP, we believe truly collaborative, systems-level change cannot happen without Indigenous voices shaping the conversation, not just participating in it. “The urgency of climate, economic, and social crises demands that we center wisdom traditions and leadership that have long stewarded regenerative, place-based systems — especially those of Indigenous communities,” says Sarah Sterling, Executive Director of Programming and Convening at SOCAP Global.
In recent years, SOCAP has taken important steps to create space for Indigenous presence and innovation. At SOCAP25, that commitment has deepened with Indigenous leadership embedded into the planning process itself. SOCAP invited Vanessa Roanhorse, a Diné (Navajo) citizen, to be the Advisor on Indigenous-Led Content at SOCAP25 to ensure that Indigenous perspectives and voices are woven throughout the agenda. Her expertise will help elevate Indigenous-led solutions and narratives across the event’s programming.
“Incorporating Indigenous perspectives across all SOCAP25 content tracks is essential to fostering holistic, regenerative solutions that honor ancestral knowledge, advance equity, and deepen our collective impact,” says Sterling. Aligned with the SOCAP25 theme, “The Future Is Collaborative: Taking Impact Mainstream,” the new advisory role reinforces SOCAP’s commitment to building authentic connections and advancing equity throughout the agenda.
“As we move to take impact mainstream,” says Sterling, “this evolution is both a responsibility and an opportunity to ensure our programming reflects the knowledge, priorities, and sovereignty of Indigenous peoples — now and into the future.”
Roanhorse is a visionary leader whose work embodies the power of Indigenous‑led innovation and relational approaches. As the founder and CEO of Roanhorse Consulting since 2016, she has built an Indigenous woman‑led think tank that co‑designs wealth- and power-building initiatives centered on community values, Indigenous research practices, and economic justice. Roanhorse brings a deep systems-thinking perspective — rooted in Indigenous worldviews — that redefines capital as connection to land, community, and relationships, expressed in initiatives like rematriating economies and relationship-based lending.
“It’s about moving from a mindset of scarcity to one of shared abundance, and that is exactly what Indigenous leadership brings to the table and the worldview to imagine a different relationship to capital and how it flows,” says Roanhorse.
Roanhorse Consulting is also part of the Inclusive Capital Exchange (ICX), a consortium of dedicated changemakers in impact investing who are working to bridge the funding gap. At SOCAP25, ICX will host a curated LP/GP matchmaking event. Interested participants can learn more and sign up here by September 30, 2025. SOCAP25 registration is required. Register for SOCAP25 with code s25_roanhorse to save $200 off the full-price ticket!
Below, Roanhorse reflects on her role at SOCAP25 and discusses how the impact community can best support increasing Indigenous leadership across sectors.
How has your role as Advisor on Indigenous-led content shaped the SOCAP25 agenda?
I approached this invitation by remembering both my very first SOCAP and my most recent experience on last year’s Content Curation Council. My goal was to create balance, ensuring that Indigenous voices included both those who are new to SOCAP and those who have returned many times, so the agenda reflects a wide range of experiences. I also prioritized finding Indigenous founders, leaders, and investors who are often unable to attend SOCAP due to a variety of barriers and worked to make this year’s convening more accessible to them. That way, more people can hear the powerful visions they are building, imagining, and leading.
From your perspective, how is SOCAP continuing to evolve its incorporation of Indigenous leaders into its programming and planning?
My first SOCAP was in 2019. I attended with Jaime Gloshay, with the support of an ally who helped us attend. At that time, SOCAP felt overwhelming, so many people seemed to already know how to pitch, who to talk to, and how to activate their networks. As newcomers, we felt behind, but through building relationships with leaders like Rodney Foxworth, Lauren Grattan, and Mark Watson, and others who were pushing for more equitable capital pathways, we found our footing.
That early experience planted the seeds for us to eventually launch Indigenous-led funds for women and Native entrepreneurs. Since then, SOCAP itself has evolved. What once felt like an environment where Indigenous perspectives were peripheral now feels fundamentally different. Today, you see Indigenous leadership integrated throughout, from welcoming blessings and prayer led by local Indigenous leaders, to Indigenous-curated lounges, to Indigenous founders and funders presenting their solutions on the main stage.
This shift has been the result of years of community lift by Indigenous people and organizations who have worked with SOCAP, not for SOCAP. And in 2025, you can feel it: SOCAP is leaning into the idea that Indigenous worldviews don’t just enrich the conversation, they show us an entirely different way to imagine how capital should flow. As the Haudenosaunee Confederacy reminds us, true progress requires that we each come to the table ready to make concessions so that everyone can thrive. It’s about moving from a mindset of scarcity to one of shared abundance, and that is exactly what Indigenous leadership brings to the table and the worldview to imagine a different relationship to capital and how it flows.
What are some of the most exciting innovations Indigenous entrepreneurs and/or investors are leading?
One of the most exciting developments is the diversity of Indigenous-led funds and financing vehicles now deploying capital across the spectrum of need. We’re seeing everything from microloans of $30,000 to venture capital checks of over $1 million. These range from community-rooted debt products to creative debt-equity hybrids to fully Indigenous-owned VC funds. The innovation here is that Indigenous leaders are designing capital that meets their communities where they are, flexible, trust-based, deeply tied to place and culture, and are seeing returns on their investments that are reasonable and grounded in the concept of enough. This diversity of models is emerging in real time, and it’s starting to weave into an ecosystem that truly supports founders across stages of growth.
How do you recommend fellow investors, fund managers, and changemakers best support increasing Indigenous leadership across sectors?
The most important thing is to build authentic, long-term relationships with communities and leaders. Too often, investors enter with preconceived solutions rather than a willingness to listen and learn. Real partnership requires patience, humility, and a recognition that Indigenous peoples already hold sophisticated frameworks for capital and governance that have lasted since time immemorial. This way of investing in relationships does not just serve working with Indigenous people and our communities, but actually serves everyone else. This is not just an “Indigenous solution,” but another way to think about our why and how we democratize access and abundance.
I think relationship looks like:
- Being prepared to move money — our communities are well-equipped and sophisticated.
- Backing all funds with patient and flexible capital.
- Making space on investment committees and boards for Indigenous decision-makers.
- Funding the infrastructure, not just the deals, that allows Indigenous entrepreneurs to thrive.
- And, above all, respecting Indigenous sovereignty and self-determination in how resources are directed.
In these times, we must move beyond repeating what has never served us. We must instead remember all of our ways of being, rooted in harmony with people and planet, as the path to a future where resources are shared, power is accountable, and future generations can thrive. This is the work of everyone, not just Indigenous people.
Register for SOCAP25 with code s25_roanhorse to save $200 off the full-price ticket!
