Theme: Firestarters

Firestarters profile - A diverse group of young thinkers, doers, activators, and unconventionals, from a variety of fields and sectors. These persons are able to impact their local environment and even transcend borders for global impact. It is a group where achievement is more valued than credentials.

Unit Trust Corporation,
82 Independence Square
Trinidad
Trinidad and Tobago

Jahson Alemu

Jahson is a doctoral candidate in the Faculty of Life Sciences of the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine and researcher at the Institute of Marine Affairs, Chaguaramas. After obtaining his Bachelors and Masters of Science degrees, Mr. Alemu joined the IMA as a coral reef ecologist supporting conservation and management policies. Over his relatively short 5 years experience in the field of conservation (1 terrestrial, 4 marine), Mr. Alemu came to realise that the tools we use to engage positive change in coastal zone management do not substantially match the challenges we face. His current research addresses how we can incorporate complex marine ecosystem values into the management of coastal zones and the impact of climate change on our reefs.

Timmia Hearn Feldman

Timmia is a theatre director, talent developer, and gender rights activist. She received her B.A. in Theatre Studies from Yale University where she specialized in directing. She was a three year member of Yale’s only experimental theatre company Control Group, the 2012 mainstage director for Yale Heritage Ensemble, and a founding member of the Yale College Original Shakespeare Company. Her directing credits include Coriolanus: a remake, by William Shakespeare, edited by herself and Daniel Larlham, (a Shakespeare at Yale Production), the first re-staging of The Shipment, by Young Jean Lee (Yale Heritage Ensemble), Marisol, by José Rivera (Senior Thesis), as well as multiple productions at Trinidad Theatre Workshop, including A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare and Two Can Play by Trevor Rhone. A theatre instructor as well as director, Timmia has worked teaching both acting and playwriting in Trinidad and Tobago as well as the United States and Nepal.