Our Projects

Since 1962, Carreras has continuously and increasingly strengthened its focus on corporate social responsibility, embedding it in our strategies, policies, decision making and practices. We continue to respond to social challenges through our contributions to adult education, crime prevention and drug rehabilitation while ensuring that creating a cleaner environment remain a top priority for our company.

EMPOWERMENT THROUGH EDUCATION AT THE TERTIARY LEVEL

Carreras is dedicated to empowering individuals through education, working with educators and their institutions to provide assistance where it is most needed. Showing development year over year, for the 2010 academic year we managed to achieve a milestone in terms of the number and diversity of scholarships we offer - a total of 40 scholarships and bursaries, specifically 8 community college scholarships, 6 teachers college scholarships, 22 bursaries at all universities island-wide and 4 visual and performing arts scholarships at the Edna Manley College.

Our prestigious postgraduate scholarship continues to attract an unprecedented level of applicants. The only scholarship of its kind offered by a corporate entity in Jamaica, at a value of $1.8 million, the 2009 - 2011 scholarship was awarded to a scholar who is keen on making a contribution to the development of the justice system in Jamaica, sharing Carreras’ philosophy of giving back to society.

For the previous academic year, we awarded five scholarships to community colleges and four visual and performing arts scholarships at Edna Manley College.

FOSTERING THE ARTS

We believe it is critical to inspire creativity and innovation and for the second consecutive year, in addition to offering scholarships to pursue the arts, we sponsored the Final Year Exhibition of Students at the Edna Manley School of the Visual Arts.

SUPPORTING DRUG REHABILITATION

Through Rise Life Management Services we continue to support drug rehabilitation programmes with donations amounting to over $1 million dollars.

CRIME PREVENTION PROGRAMMES

We continue to place our focus and resources behind aiding and enhancing crime prevention programmes and have expended millions of dollars in providing resources that will enhance the quick response and crime fighting capabilities of the Jamaica Constabulary Force.

Our members of staff in our sales depots across the island including the Mandeville, Montego Bay and Ocho Rios Depots joined our crime prevention programmes through the donation of computers, hardware, plus other items, to the Mandeville and the Mount Salem Police Stations, and the
Montego Bay and Ocho Rios Fire Stations respectively.

We also continue to make significant donations to other charitable and civic organizations as we seek to enhance public and community life.

CREATING A CLEAN ENVIRONMENT

Carreras has long been associated with recycling, improving the environment through reducing carbon emissions to the atmosphere, cleaning beaches and implementing eco-friendly practices such as recycled paper for company stationery.

“Reduce, Reuse and Recycle”
In 2009/10, we began a well needed trend of facilitating recycling at Jamaica’s high profile public events, with the sponsorship of receptacles to collect plastic bottles at Reggae SumFest and the Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festivals.

The recycling programme which focuses on the proper disposal of plastic waste is being implemented in partnership with Protect the Environment Trust. The plastic bottles collected are shredded for export.

BECOMING CARBON NEUTRAL

We took a bold step in 2009 to mitigate our Carbon emissions, embarking on the reforestation of 6.4 acres of land in the Blue and John Crow Mountains over a three year period. It is estimated that in 2008, the company emitted 1,271 tons of Carbon Dioxide.

Using the IPCC (Intergubernamental Panel for Climate Change) approach for mitigation, which
establishes that one tree mitigates one ton of CO2 during its life, Carreras, in association with the
Jamaica Conservation and Development Trust, will be planting over 1200 trees and conserving the
forest over a three year period.

We thank all applicants for their interest in applying for one of our several 2011/2012 academic scholarships. Please be advised that the deadline for applications has now passed and as such, we are no longer accepting applications.

Social Responsibility Menu

Michael Bernard, Managing Director, Carreras Limited and Hon. Andrew Holness, Minister of Education speak with Chenelle Taylor, winner of the prestigious 2009 Carreras Postgraduate Scholarship.

Carreras Scholars and their respective Members of Parliament pose at the Grand Gala Awards Ceremony in October of 2009.

Carreras’ Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Executive, Ashleigh Robotham (right), hands over a cheque for $500,000 to Sonita Morin Abrahams of Rise Life Management Services.

Christopher Brown, CORA Manager, Carreras presenting to the Minister of National Security, Hon. Dwight Nelson a cheque in the amount of $3 million for the renovation of the Spanish Town Police Station.

L-R: Private Sector Organization of Jamaica, President, Joseph Matalon, then Acting Commissioner of Police, Owen Ellington and Christopher Brown test ride the motorbikes.