WASHINGTON, DC – Thirty emerging leaders and changemakers of Caribbean heritage will be honored at Caribbean American Heritage Month festivities on Friday, June 22nd at the Inter-American Development Bank, under the auspices of Jerry Butler, the Executive Director for the Caribbean region.
The 30 Under 30 Caribbean Changemakers will attend a breakfast reception in their honor, and then participate in a Ignite Caribbean Forum to pitch their business or social enterprise to win cash and in-kind services totaling over $5,000, courtesy of lead sponsor Tower Isles Patties, Quality Management Consultancy, Success Strategies and The Futures Forum.
These thirty youth leaders were selected from a pool of nominees for their acumen and outstanding leadership in the fields of Academia, Business Enterprise, Activism or Community Leadership.
The 30 Under 30, Ignite Caribbean Initiative is spearheaded by ICS is part of its Ignite Caribbean program, which aims to engage the next generation of community activists and volunteer leaders in the dialogue to commemorate activities for National Caribbean American Heritage Month that takes place annually.
“This year’s class of honorees hailing from a cross section of Caribbean islands includes champions for farming initiatives, business owners, upcoming leaders in the fields of arts and culture, environment activists, and the list goes on”, states, Kerry Ann Reid Brown, Ignite Caribbean Co-Chair and Host of Carry on Friends Podcast. Joanne Antoine, Ignite Caribbean Co-Chair and herself a 30 Under 30 Emerging Leader in the 2016 cohort, states, “The honorees undergo a rigorous selection process from a pool of six judges of Caribbean heritage in the respective fields. As a former honoree, it is a privilege to be able to serve in a leadership capacity.”
In addition to being honored at an awards ceremony, they will also have the opportunity to pitch their projects and to win prizes (Cash and Kind) valued at over $8 thousand.
Winners of the Beryl Levi Visioneur Award (named in honor of the founder of Tower Isles) will share cash and in -kind prizes valued at over US$5000.
