Impacting Jamaica

Human resource and leadership consultant Natassia Wright feels more companies in Jamaica should invest in training and mentorship programmes for their teams.“It’s unfortunate that in our society here in Jamaica, I find that you have many companies that don’t see the value in developing people,” she says.She notes that each individual is a leader and points to the importance of having a positive mindset to achieve goals in life.In this episode of Impacting Jamaica with host Shelly-Ann Harris, the cofounder of Mind Food International shares thoughts on effective leadership and understanding responsibility at every level.

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Natassia Wright has overcome the fiery pangs of poverty and the tragic loss of both parents by age 17 to become an inspirational UN Peace Ambassador, Governor-General Awardee, and cofounder of Mind Food International, which now hires over 30 employees.“I was a dreamer as a child so even though things were happening to me my imagination never left me,” declared Natassia. “When I was young, I would always see myself on a stage…I don’t know what I was doing but I would always be in crowds.” Join the inspirational Natassia as she chats with Shelly-Ann Harris on this edition of Impacting Jamaica. Natassia is an authentic ‘hope dealer’ and firm believer in the view that there is “purpose in your pain.”

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Everything is on track for the phased execution of Jamaica’s National Identification System (NIDS).The Andrew Holness-led administration has even appointed a minister to take charge of the system, Minister Without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister, Floyd Green.He said the system is highly protected; and that it is one of the best in terms of security ever to be implemented in Jamaica.“I can tell you, this is the most secure identification card we have ever seen and not only by Jamaica standards, but by regional and international standards,” emphasised Minister Green.The minister added that, “this is a voluntary system so we are not trying to mandate people to enter into the national identification registry”. Join Impacting Jamaica host Shelly-Ann Harris as she continues an informative discussion with Minister Green who explains the main components of the National Identification System in its current form and its main components.

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“Mom was a teacher and dad worked in agriculture,” shares Minister Without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister Floyd Green. Green, who is an attorney, credits his rural upbringing and country values of respect for your elders, principles of kindness and having ‘good manners’, as core to who he is today.Passionate about serving, he was involved in many school activities, and discovered his leadership potential from very early. Green, who received the award for the most involved senior student at Munroe College, advises young people to believe in self, cautioning that “life is not a straight path”.Join host Shelly-Ann Harris for a relaxing chat with Floyd Green in this interesting edition of Impacting Jamaica.

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Last year, when Chris Strikes, a Jamaican Canadian Toronto-based filmmaker and award-winning music video creator, read about the “patty wars” that took place in Toronto in 1985, he thought the story was absurd. Then he decided to research the story and found that it did happen in February — 37 years ago — when federal food inspectors deemed Jamaican beef patties did not match the technical definition of "beef patty" under the Meat Inspection Act.They thought Canadians would confuse the beef patty with the hamburger patty. A “patty summit” was held involving local Toronto businesses selling Jamaican patties, Jamaica’s consul general and Canadian bureaucrats. It resulted in a victory for the businesses, some of which were selling Jamaican patties from the 1960s, and the lovers of Jamaican patties.A celebration was held on February 23, 1985. The issue made it onto the front page of The Sunday Gleaner and at the centre of it was Jamaican Michael Davidson, manager of Kensington Patty Palace that was established by his parents in the late 1970s. Chris Strikes was born on February 23, 1986 — exactly one year after the “patty wars” ended.As Jamaica gets ready to celebrate its 60th anniversary of independence, he thought it was important to produce a documentary, “Patty vs. Patty,” about the resilience of Jamaicans in this fight. Strikes talks about this with Impacting Jamaica host Neil Armstrong in this new episode of the podcast series.

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Even throughout the pandemic over the last two years, real estate was one of the most vibrant sectors in the Jamaican economy. All over the island, construction of homes of all types - single family dwellings, high rise apartments, housing schemes - continue apace.But before you shell out your money to make a purchase, there are some things you should know - especially Jamaicans abroad who have not lived on the island for a while.Veteran realtor of 22 years, Ruth Fraser, of Stroll Property Services, offers sage advice to prospective buyers in this episode of Impacting Jamaica with host Luke Douglas. She answers frequently asked questions about location, security, the bureaucracy involved, the buy or to build, AirBnB and more.

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For members of the Meadowbrook High School Alumni Association, giving back comes as easy as A-B-C, 1-2-3, Doh Ray-Me!“We want to reach back, to give back, while making it better for those now at the school, the institution that gave us so much when we were there as students,” offered three presidents – Nadine Moulton; SharoAnn Chisholm and Wayne Swaby – as if speaking with one voice.Their shared perspective on why they choose to be ‘difference-makers’ at this time at the St Andrew, Jamaica-based school, makes for another interesting and inspiring conversation in our ongoing podcast series, Impacting Jamaica.The Meadowbrook High School past students spoke with host Audrey Campbell. Take a listen!

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The National Baking Company boss is getting ready to make one of the firm’s largest investments in its history.Butch Hendrickson says he wants to see a better attitude in business and other sectors as Jamaica emerges from the damaging effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.Since 1994 he has headed the National Baking Company, a successful business producing quality bread, buns, crackers and other baked products for generations of people in Jamaica and abroad.Equally important is Hendrickson’s invaluable philanthropic contribution to Jamaica through the National Baking Foundation, in diverse areas such as early childhood education, small business development, food for persons in times of disaster and assistance for the elderly.In this episode of Impacting Jamaica with host Luke Douglas, Hendrickson talks about why he continues to give back to his country; the success of providing learning materials for every basic school in Jamaica; his passion for growing small businesses; and sobering thoughts about what it will take to address the decades-old problem of violent crime.

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The Manchester Beliefs, Values and Attitudes programme has been launched by Custos Garfield Green, to foster positive values and attitudes and a sense of social responsibility among citizens in the parish.The aim is to restore core values and principles that make communities thrive and promote civic pride in the society.Custos Green and his team, including Anieta Bailey, Public Relations Officer, is targeting the youth population. The initiative will work with schools to promote patriotism and respect for the nation’s national symbols, especially the National Anthem, as well as adherence to proper deportment.In this episode of Impacting Jamaica with host Keisha Hill, Custos Green and Ms. Bailey indicate that there is interest coming from other parishes, but the focus now is to first get it right in Manchester.

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Hailing from Jamaican parents, British-born Nathaniel Peat, is a multi-award-winning entrepreneur as well as a business coach and TEDx speaker. A pilot by profession, Nathaniel decided to become an entrepreneur and has since been acknowledged for his work on the Black Power List and Financial Times List.In 2015, Nathaniel was the only UK entrepreneur to be selected by Virgin United to attend a week-long leadership gathering on Necker Island with Sir Richard Branson. Nathaniel is results driven, he is the founder of The Safety Box, a company directed at changing lives. Appointed by the police, prison authorities and other groups, Nathaniel has re-educated, rehabilitated, and turned around the lives of some of the worst prisoners in the UK. In this episode of Impacting Jamaica, he tells of his wish to expose high-risk young people in Jamaica to The Safety Box.

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