Why the Gleaner Bill Johnson Poll indicates Jamaican Dream may be fuelled by Alternative Energy

Have Jamaicans stopped dreaming? Do Jamaican see the Glass as half-empty or half-full?

It would seem half-empty, according to a Gleaner-commissioned Bill Johnson poll conducted between June 9 and 11 2017 as reported in the article “Jamaicans Just Trying To Survive – Poll”, published Monday July 24, 2017, The Jamaica Gleaner. 

According to the survey:

1.      51% have no Jamaican dream

2.      48% do have an idea what the Jamaican Dream should be

Since I’m trying to be hopeful, I'll focus on those who do have a Jamaican dream, as the stats there are more promising:

1.      12% want a country where there is national/economic development

2.      8% want a crime-free country

3.      6% want financial security and stable employment

Pollster Bill Johnson claims that this poll indicates that the majority of Jamaicans are focused on day-to-day survival. Many may not think that Jamaica can be better as the social and economic problems facing people discourages them from thinking big. Clearly, Jamaicans see the glass as being half-empty

The Gleaner Bill Johnson Poll - The Glass Half Empty is full of Alternative Energy Jamaican Dreams

Still, I hope these 1500 people who were are a part of the Gleaner-commissioned Bill Johnson poll are not a reflection of the younger generation of entrepreneurs.

They offer me hope as they see the glass as being half-full and continue to dream big with an aim not to end up working in Call Centers but to create their own wealth. This I’d pointed out in my blog article entitled “How 9-y-o and Millennials in Jamaica are becoming CEO Entrepreneurs to avoid the Cubicle Rat Race”. 

It is true that employment prospects for High school and college graduates are grim. This reality is forcing many to look abroad for employment and higher education opportunities as the Private and Public Sectors cannot absorb all of them as concluded in my blog article entitled “UOPD UWI Graduate Trace Study reveals Bad choices, Entrepreneurship and brain-drain in 2016”. 

Still, I like to see the glass as being neither half empty of half-full, but potentially waiting to add more ingredients to make the right drink.

Vision 2030 is Jamaica outlook for that year that will see major shifts in our use of fossil fuels to biodiesel by the PCJ as noted in my blog article entitled “PCJ, UTECH develop Castor Oil-based Biodiesel to reduce Oil imports by 97,000 barrels”.

We’re also making the shift towards  electricity from solar and wind resources thanks to WRB Enterprises builds 20 MW Solar Farm as I’d pointed out in my Geezam blog article entitled “WRB Enterprises builds 20 MW Solar Farm in Content District, Clarendon”.

Hopefully, cheaper fuel sources means lower cost for manufacturing sector which will translate to lower cost of production, increased output and lower cost of living. Couple with an entrepreneurial drive in Jamaicans, a Jamaican dream where there is national/economic development fueled by this 48% is slowly beginning to form in the distant future, powered by Alternative energy.