The VEOC is pleased to announce that the keynote speaker for this year's Vermont Employee Ownership Conference on will be Blake Jones!
Blake is Co-Founder of Namaste Solar, an employee-owned cooperative and solar electric company based in Colorado. Founded in 2004, Namaste Solar is democratically owned and governed by its 200+ employees and is a certified B-Corp. Among its business practices are a 6:1 cap for highest-to-lowest pay, donating 10% of after-tax profits to the community, and being 100% transparent with all company information (including salaries). Due to its unique business model, Namaste Solar has earned widespread recognition including a “Best Place to Work” award from Outside Magazine (2013-2018), a “Best for the World” designation from B Lab (2012-2014), a “Most Democratic Workplace” award from Worldblu (2010-2014), and a #56 ranking on the “Inc. 500” (2009). Blake is a cooperative enthusiast and is a co-founder of three other cooperatives: (1) Clean Energy Credit Union, a new federally chartered credit union that provides loans exclusively for clean energy (and energy saving) projects throughout the USA; (2) Amicus Solar Cooperative, a purchasing cooperative and certified B-Corp that is democratically owned by 55+ solar installation companies throughout North America; and (3) Kachuwa Impact Fund, an investment cooperative and impact investing fund with multiple impact themes including renewable energy, cooperatives, certified B-Corps, and companies that are majority-owned by women, people of color, and/or employees. Blake is a 2010 Ernst & Young “Entrepreneur of the Year” award recipient and has a BE in Civil Engineering from Vanderbilt University.
In addition to his keynote talk, Blake plans to participate in one, or possibly two, of the conference's break-out sessions. Stay tuned for more updates on conference details in the coming weeks!