Incubator - Tom's of Maine

A big dream and a little support can change the world

Tom’s of Maine was started with just a $5,000 loan and a mission to make the world a better place, so we know just how important it is to support early-career changemakers. That’s why we’ve chosen to pay it forward by helping amplify the voices of people who want to make a positive change, but need help becoming a part of the conversation. Our incubator program provides the funding, mentorship, and support for five future climate leaders each year.

$20K In Funding

+ Mentorship

+ Amplification

FOR 5 CHANGE-MAKERS.

Meet the 2024 recipients

Jasmine Lamb

Orono, ME

Jasmine Lamb is the Founder and Chair of Sipayik Resilience Committee. Jasmine is committed to improving community resilience to climate change and elevating Native American voices in the climate movement. Jasmine has hosted workshops where citizens voted for community resilience actions, they want their communities to pursue and created the Sipayik Resilience Committee to pursue the goals set by the community. Jasmine is also helping other Wabanaki tribal communities to set up citizen resilience committees and participating in intertribal efforts for climate resilience and renewable energy/energy efficiency for the Wabanaki Tribes.

Zanagee Artis

Washington, D.C.

Zanagee Artis is a founder of Zero Hour. Zanagee co-founded the organization to elevate the voices of young people of color and people on the front lines of the climate crisis. Zanagee was also a co-host on a podcast for children about climate justice and co-authored A Kids Book About Climate Change.

Brittney Portes

Bloomfield, NJ

Brittney Portes is the founder of Gardens of Sol. Brittney uses her business to help people curate their gardens and grow their connection with food, agriculture, and themselves. Brittney is also a certified edible garden consultant, which is where her expertise has come into work with residents in the New Jersey area. She uses her knowledge to consult with local residents looking for edible garden consulting + coaching, garden planning, maintenance, and workshops.

Diamond Spratling

Atlanta, GA

Diamond Spratling is the founder and Executive Director of Girl Plus Environment. Diamond created Girl Plus Environment to empower Black and Brown girls, women, and non-binary individuals to stand up for environmental justice. Girl Plus Environment's overarching mission is to educate, engage, and empower these individuals to advocate for climate and environmental justice within their own communities. The organization accomplishes this by creating and disseminating free, easily accessible tools, resources, and information through innovative and creative means.

Danielle Lee

San Francisco, CA

Danielle Lee is the content creator behind Battery Girlie. Danielle uses her platform to help Gen Z build impactful careers fighting climate change. Danielle's content reaches an inclusive community of Gen Zers passionate about making an impact on climate together. She has covered a wide range of topics including AI, renewable energy, Gen Z jobs in climate, and career best practices for young people seeking to launch their career in the industry. She also works as an associate product manager at EV charging startup TeraWatt Infrastructure and earned a B.S. in Management Science & Engineering at Stanford University.

Meet our 2024 mentors

CJ Goulding

Dillon St. Bernard

Maya Penn

Nalleli Cobo

Ziad Ahmed

Frequently asked questions

The impacts of climate change are a daily reality for many communities across the U.S., yet those hot the hardest are often underserved and underrepresented in the climate movement. Through this incubator program,Tom’s of Maine is investing in the next generation of underrepresented climate change leaders — providing resources and creating opportunities to elevate the voices of these emerging leaders and helping them scale solutions that will benefit all people.

While specifics of the program may change from year to year, members of our first two cohorts received $20,000 in funding, mentorship support from climate-involved business and advocacy leaders, and multiple opportunities for training and peer-to-peer relationship building. Each of our Incubator members were environmental leaders before they joined the Incubator program, and we were also proud to amplify their work and voices where we could through our website and social media channels.

While all of our past members have been united in a desire to make the world a better place, their areas of focus have been very different! These have included empowering BIPOC women, girls and non-binary individuals to stand up for environmental justice,helping Gen Z build careers to fight climate change, helping people grow their connection with their food and community through gardening and driving awareness and engagement with ocean climate solutions.

While specifics of the program may change from year to year, past Incubator members completed an online form and submitted video entries detailing their work and what they would do with support from the Incubator program. Five entrants were selected to receive support in our first two years.

We are currently finalizing the details for year 3 of the Tom’s of Maine Incubator, so stay tuned! Following us on social media is the best way to be informed when the next application period is open.

Follow our past members and mentors on social media, and engage and amplify their content! This is a great way to spread the word of the work being done by these incredible individuals, and to help share their vision for a better future.

Read all FAQs

Committed to support future climate leaders