Salinee Hurley

Salinee Tavaranan Hurley is an engineer and a social entrepreneur. After graduating with a master’s degree in solar energy engineering from University of Massachusetts Lowell in 2005, she returned to Thailand to lead the Border Green Energy Team (BGET) as the Director. BGET provides renewable energy technology to underprivileged communities along the Thailand-Burma border.

In 2013, she founded SunSawang, a social enterprise that delivers solar-powered products and services to rural Thailand. Salinee is a 2023 Acumen Foundry Member, and a finalist of 2019 SEED Low Carbon Awards and Start Up Energy Transition (SET) Awards. Salinee was also featured in a documentary, Her Story “Light Comes to Life”, by NHK World in 2019.

Salinee continues her work of rural solar power from Mae Sot, Tak province, and stays active playing soccer, practicing yoga, and playing with her son. Salinee is pleased to share activities such as soap making and handcraft with her husband, a US Army veteran at their country home she made from adobe bricks. She has lived in this house for 11 years now. She believes that living simply and sustainably off of natural resources and land is the way that we all should move toward to.