Suncast

Welcome to Episode 138, Solar Warrior! In October 2009, Mike Eman was sworn in as Prime Minister of the small island state of Aruba, a dutch territory in the Caribbean, and over the course of 8 years established a leadership position in championing renewables. Aruba became the first Caribbean island to declare a 100% renewable target, way back in 2012, long before the recent fanfare we’ve covered here on the US cities also taking up that banner. He partnered with Sir Richard Branson & Jigar Shah via their Carbon War Room, and created the 10-island challenge, a call to other Caribbean islands to increase renewables penetration & wean off fossil fuels.   Today, Mike and I discuss how this all came to be, the obstacles his administration faced in passing this legislation, the lessons learned along the way, and the work he’s now doing to help other Small Island Developing States with similar visions for sustainability. His perspective is beautiful, so I hope you’ll take the time to check it out.   You ca