Foresight is proud to announce that our CEO Jeanette Jackson has been named to Canada’s Clean50 for 2022 honouring her contribution to clean capitalism. She was chosen from a pool of 1,000+ nominees and is recognized for her work expanding Foresight’s reach and impact over the past three years. In this post, Jeanette reflects on this journey - which almost didn’t happen.
When I moved from Executive in Residence to CEO of Foresight three years ago, a friend told me flat out that I was crazy. Why would a passionate entrepreneur take on a small non-profit? Then again, that friend should have known I never take the modest, predictable route. I’m driven by what inspires me, and in August 2018, I was passionate about building a national cleantech accelerator that drives significant movement and impact in Canada’s urgent fight against climate change.
I’m even more passionate about it today. And proud of the progress we’ve made. Our team, now almost 30 full-time staff and contractors, has supported the growth of 700+ cleantech ventures and created a programming platform that accelerators around the world are taking note of. Maybe you’ve seen some of them in the news. HTEC recently raised $217M for their hydrogen fueling solution. Clir Renewables raised $27M to grow their renewable energy monitoring solution. Axine Water Technologies signed a multimillion-dollar agreement for their wastewater treatment solution. Terramerra was awarded $7.9M to advance their agtech solution.
Our companies have created 6,400+ jobs, raised $545M in capital, and generated $273M in revenue. We now offer a suite of training programs - from initial startup to C-suite development - for cleantech innovators across Canada, supported by 100 fantastic Executives in Residence and mentors.
I think the most important advance we’ve made is around ecosystem building. The climate crisis is a massive challenge that we cannot possibly tackle if we work in silos. Foresight is highly collaborative. We tear down silos and question the status quo. If a resource, partnership, or program doesn’t exist, we create it. We’re grateful for the trust our partners put in us, and in awe of the passion and talent across Canada’s cleantech ecosystem.
Being named to Canada’s Clean50 for 2022 is an honour. It inspires me to do more. We’ve only just begun.
From advisor to activator, I’ve learned that you can’t achieve impact if you’re sitting on the sidelines. Get in the game!
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Photo caption: Jeanette Jackson (second from left) with CRIN's John Adams and Kendra MacDonald, and Delta Management CEO & Founder, Gavin Pitchford.
