GraceKennedy Foundation brings global recognition to Jamaica with CBS TV series ‘Visioneers’

GraceKennedy Foundation Project Officer Jade-Ashley Carberry- Meikle engages with TV host Zay Harding (fourth from left) and children from the Rose Town community in Kingston during filming of The Visioneers With Zay Harding.
Photo by DAN van der KOOY

For the second time in less than one month, Jamaica will again be prominently featured in the hit television series The Visioneers with Zay Harding, following an initial appearance in the show’s Season 2 premiere on Oct. 4, according to Sure Thing Productions.

The new episode showcasing Jamaica, Plastic Education, airs Saturday morning, Oct. 25, on CBS as part of the “CBS WKND” educational/informational programming block (check local listings).   

Produced by Hearst Media Production Group (HMPG) in an exclusive partnership with VoLo Foundation, The Visioneers with Zay Harding is a 30-minute weekly series hosted by international explorer and veteran adventure presenter Zay Harding. Each episode highlights innovative initiatives around the globe led by scientists, engineers, and everyday people that offer real-world environmental solutions. 

Jamaica’s dual appearances on the series were made possible by the Kingston-based GraceKennedy Foundation, which was instrumental in Harding and his crew’s coordinating and facilitating the trip to Jamaica during the summer.

According to the production company, the goal was to document for the series the work of the GraceKennedy Foundation and its partners- Netherlands-based nonprofit organization The Ocean Cleanup, and local ally Clean Harbors Jamaica Limited. The three entities are jointly spearheading The Kingston Harbor Cleanup Project (KHCP), an ambitious effort to reduce plastics and waste flowing into the island’s Kingston Harbor- the seventh deepest natural harbor in the world. 

In the widely viewed and very well-received Season 2 premiere on Oct. 4, Harding interviewed Erik Holmbom, operations manager at The Ocean Cleanup, and Michael McCarthy, Managing Director of Clean Harbors Jamaica Limited, about their innovative floating fence solution known as the “Interceptor™”. The Interceptors have been placed at nine of the most polluting gullies in the Kingston Harbor to trap and prevent waste from entering it.  

The Oct. 25 episode picks up on this narrative. Harding joins Jade-Ashley Carberry-Meikle, project officer at the GraceKennedy Foundation, during a hands-on outreach session at The KHCP’s offloading site with children from Di Cawna Library in the Rose Town community of Kingston. The segment underscores the importance of youth education in building a long-term understanding of, and appreciation for, environmental awareness and preservation. 

Harding said, “After the great response to our Season 2 premiere featuring Jamaica, this episode is hugely exciting and eagerly anticipated. To see the faces of these young Jamaican kids light up with interest and enthusiasm about the importance of a clean ocean and for the work that the GraceKennedy Foundation and its partners are doing was awesome. The episode also features a great moment showing how the kids pledge to do their own small part for the environment in the future, and I can’t wait for viewers to see that. It’s already one of the highlights of the entire season for me, without a doubt.”

GraceKennedy Foundation CEO Caroline Mahfood.
GraceKennedy Foundation CEO Caroline Mahfood.Photo courtesy GRACEKENNEDY 

For GraceKennedy Foundation CEO Caroline Mahfood, collaborating with Harding and the series to highlight the Foundation’s work and its role in The Kingston Harbor Cleanup Project was a welcome opportunity to share Jamaica’s leadership role in environmental stewardship with the world. 

“‘The Visioneers with Zay Harding’ sheds light on the work we have been doing since 2022 to improve the health of Kingston Harbor,” she says. “As project facilitator, GraceKennedy Foundation plays a pivotal role in managing The KHCP’s project funding, fostering collaboration between government and private sector stakeholders, and coordinating outreach initiatives with schools and community groups.

The Foundation also enhances public engagement by conducting tours of the offloading site, which doubles as a waste-processing hub and interactive visitor center. We are very proud of the project’s progress so far and hope that the broadcasting of these two episodes to such a wide audience on CBS will result in other nations and institutions following our lead and implementing the action we need globally. 

In the three years since the Foundation partnered with The Ocean Cleanup and Clean Harbors Jamaica Limited, the Kingston Harbor Cleanup Project has removed over 3 million kilograms of waste from Kingston Harbor. The Foundation has also engaged and educated over 3500 children and youth through school presentations and tours of the offloading site and, in partnership with The Ocean Cleanup, has raised close to J$1 billion in support of the KHCP.

Viewers in Jamaica and elsewhere outside the USA interested in watching The Visioneers with Zay Harding are encouraged to check with their local cable, satellite, or streaming providers to access CBS and the series.