Equator Initiative

Redefining Marine Conservation Through Women’s Leadership 🌊🇵🇬

We close the month of September celebrating Indigenous women and girls with one of our latest case studies from the 2025 winners: Sea Women of Melanesia (SWoM).

In Papua New Guinea, SWoM is placing Indigenous women at the heart of marine conservation. Their pioneering model blends ancestral knowledge with modern marine science and reef monitoring technology to safeguard critical coastal ecosystems.

Key impacts of their community-led model:
▪️ Ecosystem Restoration: Restored vital coral reefs and formalized community-managed marine reserves.
▪️ Women’s Empowerment: Trained local Indigenous women as divers and marine conservation leaders, transforming traditional gender norms.
▪️ Community Engagement: Involved over 3,000 community members in sustainable ocean stewardship and climate resilience.

Through their efforts, these women are strengthening climate resilience and setting a global benchmark for inclusive, community-driven marine protection.

📌 Format: Case Study
🌐 Languages: English, Tok Pisin
🔗 Read in English:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Sea-Women-of-Melanesia-Case-Study-En-r5.pdf
🔗 Read in Tok Pisin:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Sea-Women-of-Melanesia-Case-Study-Tok-Pisin-r4.pdf

What happens when women build their own economic independence?

In Ghana’s Mole Ecological Landscape, sustainable livelihoods and ecosystem restoration go hand in hand.

As a 2022 UNDP winner, the Sunkpa Shea Women’s Cooperative is proving that nature-based enterprise can be a powerful engine for gender equality. By producing certified organic shea and connecting directly to international supply chains, the cooperative provides sustainable incomes and financial autonomy to more than 800 Indigenous women.

Operating within Community Resource Management Areas (CREMAs) across 120,000 hectares of dryland forests, the cooperative reinvests its economic success directly into the land:
▪️ Financial Empowerment: Created long-term income streams for women through value-added shea processing.
▪️ Ecosystem Restoration: Restored 600 hectares of forest through native-tree agroforestry and farmer-managed natural regeneration.
▪️ Community Governance: Established no-take zones, native nurseries, and buffer areas to protect local biodiversity.

When women gain financial independence, communities and ecosystems thrive together.

📌 Format: Case Study
🌐 Language: English
🔗 Read the case study:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Sunkpa-Shea-Case-Study-En-r2-UPDATED.pdf

When Indigenous women lead, a sustainable future follows. 🌱

"Being one of the winners of the Equator Prize, when we received the news, it left us speechless. This award has great significance. The importance and value of women has been recognized for us, which has been a continuous struggle, and this award strengthens us to continue working for a much better future, full of hope." — Maricela Fernández, President and Founder of Asociación de Mujeres Indígenas del Territorio Cabécar Kábata Könana

At the forefront of this 2021 UNDP winner in Costa Rica, Indigenous Cabécar women are transforming agriculture through traditional cultural production systems (teito, wito, Chamukelo, Sa deli, and Sa cha). By rotating crops in harmony with nature, Kábata Könana protects biodiversity while ensuring food security for their territory.

Their work is a powerful reminder of the value of Indigenous women’s traditional knowledge and the vital importance of intergenerational knowledge transfer for climate resilience.

📌 Format: Case Study
🌐 Languages: English, Spanish
🔗 Read in English:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Asociacion-de-Mujeres-Indigenas-Case-Study-En-r4.pdf
🔗 Read in Spanish:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Asociacio%CC%81n-de-Mujeres-Indi%CC%81genas-Case-Study-Es-r2.pdf

When Indigenous women lead, people and planet thrive.

As leaders, knowledge holders, and agents of change, play a vital role in safeguarding ecosystems and advancing sustainable development.

Across the network, Indigenous women are driving transformative action at every level:
🟢 Nemonte Nenquimo (Alianza Ceibo, Ecuador), leading frontline territorial defense in the Amazon.
🟢 Sara Olsvig (Inuit Circumpolar Council Canada, Greenland and Canada), advancing international diplomacy to protect ancestral lands in the Arctic.
🟢 Naomi Longa (Sea Women of Melanesia-PNG, Papua New Guinea), pioneering marine conservation and coastal protection in Oceania.

Discover their stories and learn how Indigenous women are shaping the future of global climate action in our latest Exposure photo story.

Read the full story: https://equatorinitiative.exposure.co/defending-earth-nurturing-life?source=share-equatorinitiative

Celebrating Indigenous & Local Women Leaders This Month ♀️🌿🇨🇲

Ahead of the International Day of Indigenous Women and Girls on September 5, we are spotlighting how women’s leadership across the Equator Prize network is transforming environmental governance around the world. First in our series: Cameroon Gender and Environment Watch (CAMGEW).

In the Kilum-Ijim Forest of northwestern Cameroon, this 2019 UNDP winner is demonstrating how gender equality drives ecosystem restoration and community resilience. By pairing traditional knowledge with sustainable apiculture and agroforestry, CAMGEW empowers local women to protect vital watersheds while building financial independence.

Proven impacts of their community-led model include:
▪️ Ecosystem Restoration: Planted 75,000 bee-loving African cherry trees (Prunus africana) in degraded forest areas to serve as a carbon sink and safeguard key watersheds.
▪️ Sustainable Livelihoods: Trained over 1,000 beekeepers in market honey production and 772 farmers in agroforestry to improve soil health and provide sustainable firewood.
▪️ Women’s Empowerment: Provided business training to 1,580 women and distributed 1,325 microloans to foster economic self-reliance.

Follow along all month as we share more case studies honoring Indigenous and local women guarding our planet's biodiversity.

📌 Format: Case study
🌐 Language: English
🔗 Link:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Cameroon-Gender-Case-Study-English-r5.pdf

Case Study Spotlight: Ocean Revolution Moçambique 🇲🇿

What happens when traditional knowledge and modern science come together? For the communities of Inhambane Bay, Mozambique, it has transformed marine conservation.

2022 winner Ocean Revolution Moçambique roots its work in “Mukhedzisseli,” a Mozambican concept of practical wisdom passed down across generations to guide humanity’s relationship with nature. Guided by this ancestral principle, local communities are actively restoring and protecting the vital mangrove and seagrass ecosystems that sustain them.

Their model goes beyond traditional conservation by building local capacity: training community members as certified divers, leading environmental education programs, and supporting local women to pursue higher education in marine science. By placing gender equality and local leadership at the core, they are proving that inclusive, nature-based economies can protect both oceans and livelihoods.

📚 Format: Case study
🌍 Languages: English, Portuguese
🔗 English:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Ocean-Revolution-Case-Study-En-r4.pdf
🔗 Portuguese:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Ocean-Revolution-Case-Study-Pt-r3.pdf

Behind Every Winner is a Story of Resilience 📸📖

How do Indigenous Peoples and local communities safeguard 80% of the world’s remaining biodiversity? A brief summary can rarely capture the full scale of their wisdom, which is why we bring these frontline solutions to life through immersive photo stories.

Our featured photo essays on Exposure blend powerful imagery with in-depth narrative storytelling. They take you deep into the rainforests, coastlines, and mountains where local leaders are implementing on the ground.

From community-led ecosystem restoration to Indigenous sovereignty and climate adaptation, these stories give space to the voices, landscapes, and traditional knowledge driving real global change.

Explore our photo stories and immerse yourself in narratives of hope, innovation, and local leadership:

📖 Read our photo stories on Exposure: https://equatorinitiative.exposure.co/
🌍 Discover more on UNDP: https://www.undp.org/stories

Case Study Spotlight: Ser-Thiac, Vanuatu 🇻🇺

How can local leadership build climate resilience in Small Island Developing States (SIDS)?

In Vanuatu, one of the world's most climate-vulnerable nations, locally led initiatives are pioneering new pathways for nature-based solutions.

Recognized with the United Nations Development Programme - UNDP , Ser-Thiac established the first accredited forest carbon project in the Pacific Islands.

By combining Indigenous resource management with innovative conservation finance, the initiative has achieved tangible results:
🌱 Forest Restoration & Resilience: Protects vital tropical rainforests, reducing local vulnerability to flooding, drought, and extreme wind events.
📉 Emissions Reduction: Mitigated approximately 15,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions through avoided deforestation and natural forest regeneration.

Their success demonstrates how community-driven conservation can safeguard biodiversity while strengthening climate adaptation on the frontlines of global change

📚 Format: Case study
🌍 Language: English
🔗 Link:https://www.equatorinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Ser-Thiac-Case-Study-English-FNL-2.pdf

From local action to global impact 🌿✨

Across the world, Indigenous Peoples and local communities are creating innovative for a more sustainable and equitable future. Stay connected with the people, ideas, and action driving change.

Subscribe to Between the Lines, the Equator Initiative newsletter, for:
✨ Grassroots stories and community-led solutions
🏆 Equator Prize announcements
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