Luis Javier Castro defines himself as an entrepreneur and activist. He is the Founder and CEO of Mesoamerica Investments, a Private Equity Firm from where he has led investments across Latin America for 25 years in renewable energy, telecommunications, restaurants, dairy industry, and more, with partners such as OTPP, ACTIS, Bain Capital, and large business groups. In 2019, Mesoamerica acquired 35% of Alqueria, highlighted by the press as “partners in purpose.” In 2021, the company was certified as a B Corp, becoming one of Colombia’s best in sustainability.
Luis Javier is on the Board of Directors of Grupo de Energía de Bogotá, Codensa, and companies in Mesoamerica’s portfolio. He founded Yo Emprendedor, benefiting over 6,000 entrepreneurs, and recently incorporated its entrepreneurship model in Costa Rica’s public education. He is President Emeritus of AED (Alianza Empresarial para el Desarrollo), which he led for 10 years, uniting over 150 companies for a more prosperous and inclusive environment.
He is a member of the Central American Leadership Initiative, Aspen Institute Colombia, YPO, Tate Modern acquisition committee, founder of Parque La Libertad, and serves on multiple development boards. Until this year, he served on the Board of United Way Worldwide, the largest NGO globally with a $5 billion budget.
El Financiero, a Costa Rican newspaper, twice named him Businessman of the Year for promoting conscious capitalism.
In 2020, Luis Javier founded Alejandria, aiming to build an educated, connected, and empowered society based on conscious capitalism and exponentiality. Alejandria invests in high-impact ventures like Knowledgehook, improving math education globally, and Elenas, empowering 200,000 women to increase their income.
Luis Javier studied Agribusiness at Texas A&M University and earned an MBA from Georgetown University.
He is married with three children and supports cultural projects in Costa Rica and Colombia.