Bringing Money Back Down to Earth with Claude Arpels

03/18/25 • 32 min

If we want regenerative farms and food businesses to thrive, we have to talk about money. How do we help them grow without forcing them to sell out their values?

That’s exactly what Claude Arpels - and Slow Money NYC - is working to solve. Claude has spent years rethinking investment strategies to support regenerative food systems. After a first career in luxury fashion, he pivoted to impact investing, helping farms and food businesses secure the land and capital they need—without compromising their mission.

In this episode, Claude breaks down:

Why traditional venture capital and private equity push businesses toward environmental and labor exploitation.
How Slow Money NYC was created as a response to these challenges.
The creative funding tools—like revenue notes—that align investment with long-term sustainability.
The role of local investment in building resilient food systems.
And much more...

More about Claude and Slow Money:

After a first career in the fashion and luxury biz, Claude chose to dedicate himself to his interests in food, the environment, social enterprise, and the arts. He has become an impact angel investor, with a focus on local economies and businesses that have a sustainable/regenerative food and agriculture mission. His portfolio of investments includes Brooklyn Grange, Matriark Foods, Raven & Boar, and Edenesque. Claude is the Co-Chair of Slow Money NYC and a founding member of Foodshed Investors New York, which is now part of Investors Circle, whose advisory board he sits on. An important part of Slow Money’s work is helping small farms find access to land and capital. As part of this mission, Claude was one of the founding investors in Local Farms Fund and has led several investments in local farm projects.

Claude is the Board President of International Contemporary Ensemble, the nation’s pre-eminent contemporary music ensemble. Championing the works of emerging and under-represented composers, ICE has developed and performed over 1000 world premieres since its founding in 2001.

Agrarian Futures is produced by Alexandre Miller, who also wrote our theme song. This episode was edited by Drew O’Doherty.

If we want regenerative farms and food businesses to thrive, we have to talk about money. How do we help them grow without forcing them to sell out their values?

In this episode, Claude breaks down:

Why traditional venture capital and private equity push businesses toward environmental and labor exploitation.
How Slow Money NYC was created as a response to these challenges.
The creative funding tools—like revenue notes—that align investment with long-term sustainability.
The role of local investment in building resilient food systems.
And much more...

More about Claude and Slow Money:

Agrarian Futures is produced by Alexandre Miller, who also wrote our theme song. This episode was edited by Drew O’Doherty.

Previous Episode

Financing Native Food Sovereignty with Skya Ducheneaux

On this show, we’ve talked a lot about how traditional banking and financial systems make it tough for new farmers or those without direct land ownership to get a fair shot. But those challenges run even deeper for agricultural producers in Indian Country.

Enter Skya Ducheneaux, who’s tackling these barriers head-on as the leader of Akiptan—the first Native CDFI dedicated to serving agricultural producers all across Indian Country. Skya brings fresh eyes to lending, challenging old-school banking practices that just don’t work for farmers without big land holdings or a long financial track record. Instead, Akiptan focuses on sweat equity, work ethic, hands-on support, and long-term solutions - and yield tremendous outcomes as a result.

In this episode, Skya shares:

Her journey from growing up on a cattle ranch to leading a groundbreaking financial institution.
Why extractive capital leads to extractive practices—and how patient, thoughtful capital can support regenerative agriculture.
The unique ways Akiptan removes barriers and empowers Native ag producers.
Remarkable success stories from the communities Akiptan serves.
Why Native CDFIs have an opportunity to step up investment in agriculture.
And how outside investors can better align with the long-term needs of Native farmers.
And much more...

More about Skya and Akiptan:

Skya Ducheneaux is the Executive Director of Akiptan and is an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. She spent her first 18 years of life on a cattle ranch on the CRST Reservation in South Dakota. She then pursued a Bachelors and Masters Degree in Business Administration while working at a county FSA office and buffalo meat processing plant. After returning home to work for the Intertribal Agriculture Council, she was tasked with creating the first Native CDFI dedicated to serving Native Agriculture producers all across Indian Country. Akiptan began lending in January of 2019 and has grown rapidly over the years.

In addition to Akiptan, Skya has served on many advisory committees and is currently the Board Chair of the Mountain Plains CDC. In her role as Executive Director, she is a part of several CDFI coalitions, advocates locally and federally and presents at conferences to share the mission of Akiptan.

Agrarian Futures is produced by Alexandre Miller, who also wrote our theme song. This episode was edited by Drew O’Doherty.

Next Episode

Lessons Learned Roadtripping Through a Divided America with Anthony James

It’s no secret our world is in upheaval right now—climate disasters, political unrest, economic uncertainty. But in the midst of it all, there are also stories of resilience, adaptation, and new ways forward.

That’s a theme Anthony James, host of The Regen Narration Podcast, has explored deeply. From an extended road trip across the U.S., interviewing community leaders navigating climate adaptation, to studying how people respond to upheaval, Anthony has seen firsthand how crisis can be a catalyst for transformation.

In this episode, we dive into:

Why witnessing and pitching in during disaster—rather than looking away—is essential to change.
Lessons from his travels across the U.S., meeting communities in the midst of transformation.
A Paradise Built in Hell by Rebecca Solnit, and how joy and transcendence can emerge from catastrophe.
Real-world examples of people coming together across political and cultural divides to build something new.
What modern society can learn from Indigenous worldviews that see nature as kin and resilience as a collective effort.
Do we focus on building centralized movements, or do we nurture local seeds of change and trust in their transformative power?
And much more...

More about Anthony and The Regen Narration Podcast:

The RegenNarration podcast features the stories of a generation that is changing the story, enabling the regeneration of life on this planet. It’s independent media, ad-free, freely available and entirely listener-supported.

Created and hosted by Anthony James, a fifth generation Australian man living on ancient lands among the oldest continuous cultures on earth. He is a Prime Ministerial award-winner for service to the international community, sought after MC, widely published writer, facilitator and educator, Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Western Australia, and Warm Data Lab Host Certified by the International Bateson Institute.

Agrarian Futures is produced by Alexandre Miller, who also wrote our theme song. This episode was edited by Drew O’Doherty.