Esther Githinji
- @EstherGithinji
- | She/Her
About the WE Africa Leadership Program
WE lead is the Women for Environment's 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 WE pillars of personal leadership, wellbeing, 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 WE's path to scale impact through collective action and paying it forward.
To learn more about WE Africa’s yearlong transformative leadership journey, please take some time to review the program and watch the following video about WE Africa, and see the current Fellows.
Program Offerings
- 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
Eligibility
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 for 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)
Key Dates
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. A limited number of scholarships are available to help offset costs for selected applicants.
If you have questions about this application, please contact us at: applications@womenforenvironment.org.
Apply here and complete the Application Form.