Entrepreneur Linda Speldewinde’s name is known for the immense scope of work she has led for South Asia, uniting design led innovation with enterprise & building a unique eco system. In the most recent award of her honorary doctorate from Northumbria University UK, she was acknowledged for her global reputation as one of Sri Lanka’s leading entrepreneurs using the power of design to have made an impact on education, the creative sector, rural crafts and communities, as well as social and cultural sustainability. 
 

With a reputation as one of Sri Lanka’s most progressive innovative brains, Linda sits on many boards including the advisory board of the Export Development Board of Sri Lanka, Innovation Committees under the Ministry of Development, Apparel Industry advisory boards and Hotel Industry boards and is a recipient to several awards, including the Women Leadership Award and Women in Management. She holds a MBA from PIM, and is an alumni of the British Council’s ‘Young Creative Entrepreneurship’ from which she hold a special commendation for changing society through education. As much Linda is a driver of innovation and entrepreneurship, she is also a passionate advocate of female empowerment and has initiated and driven many initiatives in this areas. She is a strong advocate of the potential of South Asian women to contribute to a global landscape especially in the areas of creativity, education, traditional craft and manufacturing sustainability and entrepreneurship. Her work resonates through young design talent, business and emerging creative cultures from heritage crafts to digital retail, blazing a trail of inspiration in how design can, in fact, contribute to the world.