OUR CANADIAN BUSINESS PARTNER LALITH GUNARATNE NOMINATED FOR COLLEGES ONTARIO PREMIER’S AWARDS
Since 1992, “Colleges Ontario”, the advocacy organisation for the 24 colleges of the Canadian province of Ontario, annually presents the Premier’s Awards to honour the important social and economic contribution their college graduates have made in Ontario and throughout the world. In six categories, the colleges propose nominees demonstrating an outstanding career success related to their college experience. This year, the ceremony took place on the 27th of November at the Sheraton Hotel in Toronto. Our business partner and one of the directors of our joint venture company oursun Canada Inc., Mr. Lalith Gunaratne was one of the nominees proposed by the Seneca College in the category “Technology”, especially honouring his contribution in renewable energy.
Born in Sri Lanka and raised in Toronto, Lalith, after graduation from Seneca College, contributed to establish renewable energy industries in Sri Lanka, where he aimed at bringing solar electricity to rural homes. He also promoted renewable energy for rural development in Africa. Alongside his business activities, he was also involved in civil society action. To get support for renewable energy in Sri Lanka he co-founded the non-profit organization Energy Forum in 1990, doing advocacy work for renewable energy technologies with the government and the public. Since 2015, Lalith is one of the directors of our joint venture company oursun Canada Inc., which focusses on establishing renewable energy solutions for Aboriginal Communities in Canada that suffer economic and social issues due to the lack of unlimited electricity.
The award’s ceremony took place on the 27th of November in Toronto.
In its business activities and with its focus on developing hybrid solar PV systems and mini grids, oursun Canada pursues the philosophy of sharing value, being sensitive to traditional cultures and building long-term relationships. We are committed to long-term successful clean energy projects to ensure a sustainable and reliable power supply for remote communities. On the basis of our project development, execution and financing model sun2share we offer our clients the possibility to jointly execute their projects and benefit from our longstanding experience and our strong technological know-how.
|
|
Lalith was one of the nominees proposed by the Seneca College in the category “Technology”, especially honouring his contribution in renewable energy.
Lalith’s nomination for the Premier’s Award is strongly connected to his education. The nomination committee especially honoured his critical thinking and his focus on finding a balance with technology for a sustainable and resilient world. “I’ve always done things differently. I was keen on doing something hands-on and the training I received at Seneca was very practical,” he emphasises. “It gave me insights into how things work and I learned systems thinking that enabled me to become strategic and holistic in what I did to be creative in developing new business, training people and establishing performance indicators.”
|
Read about a key trend in Africa, where Safari lodges changeover to clean solar energy and storage.
Find the article about Lalith’s participation at a UN panel in Canada. |
