Elisa Harley

Kia ora I’m Elisa and I’m year 13 at Wellington Girls College. My mission is to live a purpose-driven life that pushes the boundaries and inspires other young girls to create a better future for the planet, themselves and the generations to come.

I love to love. Love people, love the planet, love innovation, love ambition, love God and love learning. Learning is a huge one, and one that comes with exposure. That’s why I always put my hand up for any opportunity that comes my way. Drive a digger, build an app, and anything business-related. You don’t know what you don’t know! As a person who loves entrepreneurship, I want to be able to step into other people's lives to see what it’s like and how I can help!

My journey is best described as ‘one thing led to another’ — from selling succulents and kākābeak/ngutukākā at my local fair to now trying to find a solution to the 350,000,000 plastic pots that we use every year in Aotearoa! My business Enivo Pots has made incredible partnerships with scientists, received 3 grants and worked with lawyers, financial advisors, industry experts and more! The innovation from collaborations with this team of supporters has led Enivo Pots to winning 3rd place at the Young Enterprise Scheme National awards as well as the MPI and MBIE Awards. I also won the Dominion Post 2023 Youth Wellingtonian of the year!

My mentors and supporters around me have been the reason this has been possible. I not only needed business advice, but also mentors to look after me as a person! This is where the Pinnacle Program made a huge impact in my life, by pushing me as a leader. I enjoyed every part of stage 1 from the induction, to Spirit of Adventure (the best 10 days of my life) to the Zoom calls. I am so excited to continue my journey through Stage 2 of the program to become the best version of myself, creating a better world for people, the planet and the generations to come.