Some Jamaican entrepreneurs, leaders and personalities involved in the island’s sustainability and renewable energy movement were recently featured in the internationally renowned business magazine, Forbes.

The coverage came in the form of two articles entitled “Make Jamaica Green Again: 10 Powerful Women Leading The Sustainability Movement” and “6 Renewable Energy Entrepreneurs Lighting Up Jamaica”.

The features were penned by Forbes writer James Ellsmoor, a Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneur. Ellsmoor is actively involved in environmental projects around the world being the co-founder of Solar Head of State, a non-profit organisation raising awareness through high-profile projects, and working as a consultant to private and government organisations in areas related to the environment and entrepreneurship.

In an interview with the Jamaica Observer following the publication of his articles in Forbes magazine, Ellsmoor had a lot of praise for Jamaica’s efforts towards sustainability and addressing environmental issues and believes the country is punching well above its weight. He cited the island’s recent ban on a number of single-use plastics as an example of where Jamaica has made a bold move relative to a number of other countries that are still lagging behind.

“Jamaica is such an innovative place and I really wanted to showcase that,” Ellsmoor said speaking about his motivation for writing the stories. “There is a personal interest because I have a real passion and love for Jamaican culture and the island has such a beautiful environment. But additionally I think there is so much potential that is often not seen globally beyond music and sports and I wanted to showcase that side of Jamaica.”

The story that focused on Jamaican women in the sustainability movement featured female personalities from both the private and public sectors.

Included were: Heather Pinnock, acting general manager at the Urban Development Corporation; Suzanne Stanley, CEO at Jamaica Environment Trust; Claire Nelson, chief ideation leader at the futures forum; Emma Lewis, blogger and environmental advocate; Lauren Le Franc, founder of the Little Coffee Company; Lisa Binns, founder of Stush In The Bush; Allison Rangolan, chief technical director at Environmental Foundation of Jamaica; Valrie Grant, managing director of GeoTechVision Enterprises; Susan Otuokon, executive director at Jamaica Conservation And Development Trust; and Andrea Dempster-Chung, founder of Kingston Creative.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/jamaican-entrepreneurs-featured-in_157433