‘Captain Sunshine’ to be featured on CNN

Program featuring American-Israeli solar pioneer Yosef Abramowitz set to appear on CNN.

By SHARON UDASIN
Abramowitz 370 (photo credit: Energiya Global Capital)
Abramowitz 370
(photo credit: Energiya Global Capital)
A program featuring American-Israeli solar pioneer Yosef Abramowitz will appear on CNN’s The Next List series hosted by Dr. Sanjay Gupta in May.
The 30-minute program will trace Abramowitz’s life, from his upbringing in a Boston activists commune through his decision today to bring solar power to countries across the globe. As the first Israeli to appear on Gupta’s program, Abramowitz will join the ranks of international innovators, visionaries and agents of change who have been profiled on The Next List. The program will air on Saturday, May 11, in North America only at 2:30 p.m.
After joining the Young Judea youth movement and leading an anti-apartheid group at Boston University, Abramowitz married Rabbi Susan Silverman – of recent Women of the Wall fame – and decided together with his family to move to Kibbutz Ketura, in southern Israel.
While the Abramowitz-Silvermans today live in Jerusalem, Kibbutz Ketura remains the home of Israel’s first medium-sized solar field, the brainchild of Abramowitz and his partners David Rosenblatt and Ed Hofland at Arava Power Company. This same site will soon become home to a large solar field that just last week reached financial closure.
In addition to his work to develop the Israeli solar industry, Abramowitz just months ago launched a Jerusalem-based firm called Energiya Global Capital, which is developing solar fields worldwide to help countries become energy independent.
“Our goal is to not only solarize Israel as a renewable light unto the nations, but to supply clean, green power to 50 million people in the developing world by 2020,” Abramowitz said. “Bringing solar energy to developing nations embodies impact investing at its best, especially since the US government provides risk insurance to our American investors in the solar fields.”
Known as “Captain Sunshine” not only to his Kibbutz Ketura friends but to solar innovators throughout the country, Abramowitz last year was named one of the planet’s six leading “Green Pioneers” by CNN and was also recognized as “Person of the Year” by the Israel Energy and Business Convention. He also has been named among the top 50 most influential Jews worldwide by The Jerusalem Post for the past two years.
“My partners, investors and I are deeply grateful to CNN for allowing us to share our vision to fight climate change by bringing solar energy to under-served populations and providing a cost-effective alternative to burning diesel for power,” Abramowitz said.