She Trained 6,000 Women Farmers Across 5 Caribbean Countries. Here's the Model.
Keithlin Caroo-Afrifa grew up in Faux, a rural farming community in St. Lucia, surrounded by women who fed families and sustained the land, with almost none of them ever formally recognized for it. She left for university, earned her dream job at the United Nations, and then hit a wall. Sitting inside global policy at the UN, she realized she wasn't actually helping the woman who raised her, or St. Lucia, or the Caribbean at all. So she started Helen's Daughters off the side of her desk, using her own time and her own money, while still working full-time at the UN. Today, Helen's Daughters operates across five Caribbean countries, has trained over 6,000 women through its Academy, and has been featured by Forbes, the BBC, and National Geographic. Keithlin holds an MBE and is the youngest and first Afro-Caribbean Goodwill Ambassador, and she's now working to convert one of the Caribbean's most recognized nonprofits into a social enterprise. In this episode, Keithlin talks about: ◼ Why the UN's "meritocracy" wasn't actually equal for people from small island states ◼ Why she uses the word "farmHERs" instead of farmers, and the real story behind it ◼ The moment she almost gave up when the grants and fellowships weren't coming ◼ How Helen's Daughters expanded into five Caribbean countries using country coordinators instead of trying to be everywhere herself ◼ What building this organization has actually cost her, personally ◼ Founder's Final Five: the one policy change that would help women farmers most, the biggest untapped business opportunity in Caribbean agriculture, and the uncomfortable truth nobody wants to admit about the sector This is Episode 004 of The Foundpreneur Podcast — where we cover the founders reshaping the Caribbean and its diaspora. Follow Helen's Daughters: Website — helensdaughters.org Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook, X — @HelensDaughters The Foundpreneur Podcast covers Caribbean founders, Caribbean entrepreneurship, and the builders reshaping the region and its diaspora. New episode every week. Subscribe to The Foundpreneur Weekly newsletter — foundpreneur.co Follow Foundpreneur — @foundpreneur on Instagram
