Grace Foster-Reid

“I had always wanted to give back in some way to my community. It has not been easy, but ultimately it’s been worth it – we go from mountaintop to mountaintop by climbing in and out of deep valleys.”

Grace Foster-Reid is an MIT-trained engineer turned beekeeper and entrepreneur. She manages and owns ECOFARMS, a Jamaican company that produces honey and mead. 9 years ago, Grace decided to use her training in environmental engineering to transform her family farm into a sustainable, purpose-driven business. She wants to use ECOFARMS to solve social challenges in her community, especially its high rate of youth unemployment. Grace’s goal: to employ 100 Jamaicans in her hometown, Mandeville.

She’s committed to sustainable beekeeping and hopes people everywhere can be more mindful of how we treat the Earth. Grace says she’s realized how precious natural resources are now that she and her community are dependent on the environment and bees for food production. She’s successfully established more than 100 bee colonies and continues to expand her team.