Smiling Maasai woman in Tanzania

African Women in Conservation

Programs

African People & Wildlife launched the African Women in Conservation Initiative because we know that one female leader has the power to change her community and the world.

The empowerment of women and girls is essential to our 2030 Vision and our commitment to deepening and intensifying our impact in Tanzania and beyond. The initiative merges female empowerment and environmental programming to break down barriers that have held women and girls back from conservation opportunities.

Giving Girls a Chance to Thrive

We're working to provide rural girls in Tanzania with access to a nurturing environment where they can study and learn important life skills. Through our scholarship program, we empower young women like Magreth to pursue higher education, offering opportunities that transform their futures and communities. In addition, we added Girls Clubs to our existing youth environmental education program, weaving a comprehensive curriculum of conservation and life lessons that provides increased support for girls at ages likely to make a lasting difference.

Two girls attending summer camp at Noloholo

Mentoring Young Women Professionals

Our Women in Conservation mentorship program supports Tanzanian women in their conservation careers by providing opportunities to work with our high-impact programs. Mentees gain critical field experience, receive an introduction to project management, and continue to develop both their technical and soft skills that will serve them in any future endeavor. African People & Wildlife continues to provide mentorship as they pursue their careers.

Staff maintain wildlife camera traps

Addressing Systemic Barriers to Leadership

In addition to increasing the number of women in leadership roles within our organization, we support efforts to identify and tackle obstacles that keep women from participating in natural resource management. At the invitation of the Tanzanian government, we commissioned a first-of-its-kind study on barriers to women in leadership positions that shows the need for more women in decision-making positions and increased attention to gender equity in the workplace.

Yamat leading a MELA training

Promoting Women's Conservation Enterprise

Women-led conservation enterprises contribute to gender equity outcomes and to a global transformation toward more sustainable economies. Our Women's Beekeeping Initiative currently supports 104 women’s groups and over 1,900 rural women in developing nature-friendly businesses through microgrants, beekeeping training, entrepreneurship training and mentoring, and market assessments.

Queen Bee beekeepers during training
Maasai women listening to a community presentation

Investing in New Visions

Explore our interactive story map to read about some of the women and girls uplifted by our programs and learn how this initiative will invest in the vision, leadership, and talent of the next generation of female conservation champions.

A women's group creates beaded jewelry

Join Us

African People & Wildlife is extremely grateful to Lyda Hill Philanthropies for providing seed funding for the African Women in Conservation Initiative.

‍We are growing a team of supporters who will unleash the potential of African women and girls to develop, practice, and disseminate conservation programming. Together, we will ignite lasting change by demonstrating the positive impact of female conservationists in their own communities and beyond.

Rangeland monitoring in the Engaruka Valley

Support Women in Conservation

Africa's female leaders need the power to change communities.