“I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept.”
Angela Davis, American Feminist & Political Activist
We curate and facilitate capacity strengthening and networking opportunities for women environmental leaders across francophone Africa. These spaces create room for women to build leadership skills while fostering connection and exchange. Women are exposed to new ideas, tools and approaches that broaden their perspectives and strengthen how they show up.
Even experienced leaders face barriers in communicating their work in ways that resonate across audiences and contexts.
Storytelling shapes how work is understood, valued, and supported: when done well it can influence perceptions, build connections, and open spaces within environmental and public discourse.
As Lupita Nyong’o, Kenyan-Mexican actress and author, reminds us: “If you don’t tell your story, someone else will—and they will get it wrong.”
We see storytelling as a core leadership skill: one that connects locally lived experiences to broader challenges, strengthens positioning and influence, and allows women to develop and carry their own narratives of change.
We run a 6-month storytelling training delivered at least once per year, combining online learning modules, individual coaching and group sessions. We invite women to explore why women’s contributions have been overlooked throughout history, to question the narratives that have long defined their place in society, and to take a fresh look at their own journeys and what they have accomplished, clarify the vision behind their work, and shape narratives that reflect their values, experiences, and impact.
The process is practice-based: we encourage participants to apply what they learn in real-life contexts, allowing them to test, refine, and strengthen their narratives over time.
Women strengthen their ability to communicate the vision for change that they carry. They also deepen their understanding of how dominant narratives shape perceptions, and how their own voices can help challenge and transform them.
Women gain clarity on their purpose and approach and learn to structure messages that connect personal experience with wider environmental and social issues.
They build confidence in communicating about their work and vision, strengthen their voice, and develop the ability to engage different audiences—communities, partners, and decision-makers—by adapting their messages to create meaningful connections and mobilize support. Through sharing their lived experiences, they are also better equipped to inspire and influence others, particularly younger generations.
We host Café Éc(h)o, a monthly in-person breakfast in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
We design each gathering as a structured yet informal networking space, where participants build strategic connections, exchange knowledge on key environmental issues and opportunities, and sometimes engage with guest speakers and experts.
Through facilitated formats—including small group discussions and speed networking—women meet, connect, and learn from one another in a dynamic and accessible way.
Café Éc(h)o strengthens professional networks, fosters collaboration, and creates regular opportunities for exchange that support women’s leadership and engagement in the environmental sector locally, regionally and globally.
