Majd Mashharawi trained as an engineer despite family ambitions for her to become a doctor. Talking to us on Skype despite a throat infection, she explains how her company GreenCake manufactures sustainable and eco-friendly building materials. ‘If I lose my goal to help the people, I will lose everything,’ she says. Following local and international recognition for her first venture, she has begun SunBox, a new business providing Palestinian families who lack access to electricity with solar kits.

Photograph: Alamy Stock Photo