Social entrepreneurship: Innovating for people's future
Founders & Team
Pierre Pringiers - Founder and Director of the Building A Future Foundation - has an engineer background (BSc. Electro-Mechanics, University of Gent, Belgium) and lives and works in Sri Lanka since 1985 as co-founder of the group Solideal in the tyre industry (representing six factories in Sri Lanka, one in China, two in Europe and employing 6800 persons with a worldwide distribution network in 100 countries).
He is Honorary Consul for Belgium in Sri Lanka since 1999.
Following the tsunami disaster in 2004, he co-founded the Solideal Loadstar Rehabilitation Trust (SLRT) with the Jinasena family with an initial donation of 1 million USD to render relief to victims of the disaster.
In November 2005, Pierre Pringiers was decorated by The King of Belgium Albert II with ‘Chevalier de l’ordre de Léopold’ in recognition for the achievements. In November 2006, SLRT project was recognised by the United Nations (UNHCR) as the best housing reconstruction project. He also received the honour of the “MELVIN JONES FELLOW” from the Lions International Foundation for the dedicated humanitarian services.
He is passionate about sailing.
Koenraad Pringiers – Director of the Building A Future Foundation – has a BSE diploma in Mechanical engineering (University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia PA, USA) and did a Global Executive MBA (Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA / ESADE Business School, Barcelona Spain) in 2009-2010.
He was R&D Manager at Solideal NV in 1990 - 1991, he is Senior Executive Director at Loadstar (Pvt) Ltd from 1998 as well as Director of Unilink International (Pvt) Ltd from 1998 and Director of Do-It-E Lanka (Pvt) Ltd from 2000.
He is Consulaats Secretaris / Deputy Head of Mission at the Honorary Consulate of Belgium in Sri Lanka since 2000. He was Director/President if the European Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka –from 2005 to 2007.
He was raised in Sri Lanka and is passionate about sailing.
Mr. Tissa Jinasena – Founder and Director - commenced his career in 1973 as a Director in Jinasena Group, which is a family owned business. As a director of Jinasena Group he was instrumental in establishing Jinasena Electric Motors (Pvt) Limited, Jinasena Agricultural Machineries (Pvt) Ltd and Jinasena Engineering Technologies (Pvt) Ltd within the group. In 1984 he played a key role in establishing Loadstar (Pvt) Limited and was appointed as the Director, Engineering of the company. Later he went on to become the Joint Managing Director in 1999 and the CEO in 2006 of the company. Today, Loadstar is considered as a world leader in Solid tires and a significant player in industrial and construction sector Pneumatic tires.
Dr Tissa Jinasena is the Chairman of the National Apprentice and Industrial Trainees Authority of Sri Lanka and a Board Member of several other institutions that come under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Skills development of Sri Lanka. Dr Jinasena is also a Board member of NANCO Ltd, which is the institution sphere heading the national Nano Technology Initiative of Sri Lanka and a Steering Committee Member of the Monaragala Rubber Development Program which is a National level initiative aimed at propagating rubber plantations in to none traditional areas of Sri Lanka.
Dr Tissa Jinasena, has obtained a B Tec degree from the University of Loughborough, UK and a MSc degree from the University of Reading, U.K. Furthermore, He has also completed the Owner/President Management Program conducted by the Harvard Business School at Boston, Massachusetts.
In the year 2008, Dr Tissa Jinasena was awarded an honorary Doctorate by the University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka, in recognition of the services he has rendered to the development of the Engineering and Manufacturing Sector of Sri Lanka.
Dominique Goybet – Senior Manager Development - has a Master in Social Communications (IHECS, Belgium). She lived 4 years in India where she worked as a Volunteer in a social project initiated by the Alliance Française in Chennai and as PR Manager at the Indo French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in New Delhi. She lived 8 years in Sri Lanka and worked as Researcher at the International Comity of the Red Cross in 2004, as Project Coordinator at the Solideal Loadstar Rehabilitation Trust from 2005 to 2007 and at Building A Future Foundation from 2007 up to today. She is based in Paris, France since end 2008.
Jagath Adipola – Senior Project Manager– has a MSc in Mechanical Engineering and post graduate diploma in Business Administration. He studied and lived several years in Moscow Russia. He has 17 years’ working experience in the industry in Sri Lanka and is working with BAF Foundation since 3 and a half year. He is Director of BAFF‘s spinoffs BAFF Polymech Pvt Ltd and Solar Impulse Pvt. Ltd.
Kapila Kumara – Project Manager – has a BSc in marine Biology and a diploma in Management and marketing. He works with BAF Foundation since 2005.
Kalana Nanayakkara – Project accountant – is undergraduate of Bsc in Business Administration at University of Sri Jayawardanepura-Sri Lanka. He is life member of the Association of Accounting Technicians of Sri Lanka-MAAT and has completed the Certificate Level of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka.
He worked 2 years as senior accountant at Ernst & Young and 3 years in the industry. He is working with BAF Foundation since 2008.
Gayan Suranga – Assistant Engineer – has a Mechanical Engineering Advance diploma from City & Guilds in UK and a national certificate in technology. He worked as draughtsman in a renewable energy company before joining BAF Foundation in 2007.
Chanaka Kumara – Diver – obtained the PADI Rescue River, PADI Advance Open Water Diver and PADI Open Water Diver diplomas. He has 12 years working experience and joined BAF Foundation in 2006.
Ishara Chathurani – Human Resource Officer – is a Bachelor of Arts. She joined BAF Foundation in 2010.
Geeth Rohan Weerawarna – Technical Trainer – has a certificate in Mechanical Engineering. He has 11 years working experience in the industry and joined BAFF in 2006.
Samudra Nilmini – Accounts Trainee – is currently studying Chartered Accounts and works as a trainee within BAF Foundation.
Nishantha Kumara – Accounts Assistant – has a Chartered Accounts intermediate level diploma. He works with BAF Foundation since 2 years.
Charitha Priyadarshana – Purchasing Officer – has a certificate in Purchasing & Material Management. He has 6 years working experience and works with BAF Foundation since 4 years.
Lakmal Tharaka – Stores Trainee – is undergraduate in Business Administration and joined BAFF in 2011.