WE Africa’s purpose is to put women leaders in Africa at the heart of transforming the environmental movement through inclusive, collective leadership.WE Africa was born through our frustration that the joint crises of biodiversity loss and the climate emergency also reflect a crisis and lack of diversity in leadership that needs urgent attention.
WE Lead is our 12-month annual leadership experience for women environmental leaders in Africa. The program has been designed by leadership experts and co-created with WE Africa fellows since 2021 and is grounded in our pillars of personal leadership, well-being, relationships for collaboration and peacebuilding, visibility for impact, and radical imagination. On graduating from the WE lead experience the WE Africa fellows join the WE Move community, which is as WE path to scale their impact through collective action and paying it forward.
Applications are now open for the WE Africa 2024 Cohort.
What the WE Africa Leadership Program offers:
Membership in a community of passionate, experienced African women who are some of the most senior leaders in the environmental sector today.
Access to twelve months of 1:1 leadership coaching
An opportunity to create a new leadership vision for yourself and to pursue personalized leadership development activities to realize that vision.
Weekly two-hour online sessions designed to complement your work
Two in-person retreats for intensive community-building and personal and collective growth
WE Africa’s Leadership Program is for you if you find yourself thinking…
“I have been running an organization for years, but feel that I am missing key leadership skills that would make me a more inclusive, collaborative, effective leader.”
“I feel that I have lost my sense of who I am and what I believe in. I’m tired and I don’t know how to get my energy back.”
“I am so isolated in my environmental work and wish I could find a community to support me.”
“I love my organization but it may be time for me to move on to other work. How do I ensure my organization will outlast me?”
“We could get so much further if we could just trust each other and share ideas and resources. Where can I find leaders like me who want to help each other?”
“How do I help keep myself and my team healthy and happy in such an intense, high-stress field?”
“I have a vision that the future leaders of my organization will be mostly African and half of them will be women. How do I make that happen?”
Eligibility Criteria
The WE Africa yearlong transformative leadership journey is for women who meet the following criteria:
African nationals, current citizens of a country in Africa, or those who have had permanent residency in Africa for a minimum of 15 years
A minimum of 8 years of experience working in the environmental space in government, NGO, or private sector in Africa including at least 3 years serving in a senior leadership role.
Actively involved in all areas of the environment; including but not limited to the green economy, climate action, pollution, biodiversity and community conservation, indigenous rights, and the environment, environmental policy and law, environmental journalism and science communication, and social entrepreneurship.
A commitment to investing in your personal growth and participation in the full 12-month program.
A record of mentorship and desire to support future environmental leaders.
Access to reliable internet for the entire duration of the 12 months.
Ability to manage your calendar to attend one 2-hour online session each week at a set time.
Able to speak and understand English conversationally.
A commitment to contribute USD approximately $2000 toward the cost of the program and your travel to retreats (approximately 15% of the total cost per person)
*If you do not meet the requirements from the second point above, you may provide motivation in the application about why you believe you are eligible and if accepted may be required to provide a letter from your employee supporting your participation in the weekly online sessions.
Key Dates. Please note the timeline for this year’s application review process:
3 July – Application Open
15 August – Deadline for Application Submissions
19 September – Final Round Top 30 Candidates Notified for Interviews
Mid-October – Final Round Interviews Conducted
13 November – Public announcement of 2024 Fellows
Please note: The deadline for applications is Tuesday, 15 August by midnight East Africa Time.
