At the EarthX E-Capital Summit, I had the honor of leading and moderating the panel titled “Critical Innovation Needed Now: Investment Opportunity with Island Nation’s Energy Transition,” featuring St. Maarten’s Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs and Nicholas Davis, CEO of GridMarket. As an island nation, St. Maarten is uniquely qualified to see firsthand some of the effects of climate change, and how it can wreak total havoc on the fabric of lives and economy. Hurricane Irma devastated St. Maarten, and there has been a lengthy process to rebuild.
In August of 2021, the private-public partnership (PPP) between St. Maarten, GridMarket and Island Resilience Partnership was announced. It was formed to move St. Maarten toward a resilient energy future.
The island nation is well-suited to the PPP structure to fund its sustainable energy future, according to Nick Davis. During the session, the figure of $500 million was cited as the investment amount needed to accomplish St. Maarten’s goals over the next several years.
The summit was brilliantly curated by Executive Director Vikram Agrawal and this team. Hundreds of disruptive innovators, capital providers and all manner of thought leaders in the sustainability and energy transition space converged to advance the purpose of helping restore and heal Mother Earth. The eclectic mix of attendees was orchestrated beautifully.
Happy Earth Day, Earth.