This is the second in our series sharing the perspectives of participants and facilitators within our ecofeminist leadership programme, Les Éclaireuses, which is running in the Republic of Congo. Here, Irma Séraphine Pella, Executive Director of Femme Énergies et Développement Durable (Women, Energy and Sustainable Development) in the Republic of Congo, shares how she came to become a leader for environmental protection and women’s empowerment, and why she believes women hold the answers to protecting the Congo Basin’s forests.
If women are not involved, we cannot protect our forests
According to Irma: “Women are the ones carrying the solutions. If they are not involved, we cannot protect our forests.” This is the principle that has guided her in more than twenty years of collaboration with rural communities in the Republic of the Congo.
Today, as Executive Director of Femme Énergies et Développement Durable, Irma works alongside women living in and around the Congo Basin rainforest, helping them develop sustainable livelihoods while protecting one of the world’s most important ecosystems. But her own journey into environmental leadership was far from planned as such. “I trained as an electrical engineer,” she recalls. “I never imagined that one day I would be working on forests, climate and women’s empowerment.” Everything changed when she attended an international conference on women and domestic energy. Listening to women from across Africa, she began to understand how closely energy, forests and women’s daily lives were connected.
“I realised that if we wanted to protect the environment, we had to start by working with women.” That realisation inspired her to help establish an organisation dedicated to both environmental protection and women’s empowerment. Since then, her team has introduced improved cooking stoves, promoted agroforestry, restored degraded land and developed ecological briquettes that reduce the need for firewood. Their reforestation work has expanded from restoring 50 hectares of forest to more than 100 hectares, while plans are underway for an ecofeminist ecological village where sustainable practices can be demonstrated in everyday life.
“It is not enough to talk about protecting nature,” Irma says. “People need to see that there are practical alternatives that improve their lives.”
Women already have the answers!
For Irma, protecting the rainforest is protecting a wonderful ecosystem and the livelihoods of local communities. “The women are in the fields every day. They collect the firewood, they prepare the meals, they notice when the rains change or when the harvests become smaller.” But because of this, women are often the first to experience the effects of climate change, even if they do not always recognise them as such.
“Many women tell us that the seasons are changing, that farming has become more difficult, but they don’t necessarily connect this with climate change.” That is why her organisation focuses on practical learning. Women are encouraged to test new farming methods, discover alternative energy sources and see sustainable practices working within their own communities.
“When people see that something works, they want to adopt it themselves.” For Irma, this approach creates lasting change because communities become the owners of the solution. And she is pleased with the effects in her community.
“The women are in the fields every day. They collect the firewood, they prepare the meals, they notice when the rains change or when the harvests become smaller.”
Discovering a different kind of leadership
Although Irma has spent many years leading a respected organisation, she admits that joining Well Grounded’s leadership programme challenged some of her assumptions: “I thought I already knew what leadership was,” she says with a smile. “But this training made me realise there is still so much to learn.”
Following an organisational assessment, she recognised that while her organisation had grown and earned national recognition, there was still room to strengthen the way it was led. What surprised her most was where the programme began. “I expected we would start with managing organisations,” she explains. “Instead, we started with ourselves.”
The leadership journey developed by Well Grounded is built around three stages. The first is leading yourself. Participants explore their own values, behaviours and leadership style. They reflect on how they respond to challenges, communicate with others and build confidence in their own abilities. “It helped me understand myself better,” Irma says. “Before leading others, you have to know yourself.”
Only then does the programme move to leading teams, strengthening communication, collaboration and trust. “We often think leadership means giving instructions,” Irma reflects. “Now I see that it is about listening, supporting people and helping them grow.”
The final stage focuses on leading organisations, helping participants think strategically, strengthen governance and increase long-term impact. “It is like building a house,” she explains. “You start with the foundations. First yourself, then your team, then your organisation.”
“We often think leadership means giving instructions,” Irma reflects. “Now I see that it is about listening, supporting people and helping them grow.”
Strong women create strong organisations for strong forests
The leadership retreats reflect Well Grounded’s wider vision for the Congo Basin. Well Grounded invests in the people and organisations already working to protect forests. By strengthening local leadership, encouraging collaboration and supporting women leaders, our organisation is helping civil society become more resilient and better equipped to tackle environmental challenges over the long term.
For Irma, this investment in people is an investment in conservation itself. “If the organisation is strong, it can better serve communities. And if communities are strong, they can better protect the forest.”
The programme has also introduced her to a network of women leaders from across the Republic of the Congo. “Before, many of us didn’t know each other,” she says. “Now we can share experiences, support one another and work together.” That sense of solidarity has become one of the greatest strengths of the retreat.
“When you meet women facing the same challenges, you realise you are not alone!”
“If the organisation is strong, it can better serve communities. And if communities are strong, they can better protect the forest.”
A generation of leaders
Looking ahead, Irma hopes the knowledge she has gained will ripple far beyond her own organisation. “I want to pass this on to my team,” she says. “Leadership should not stay with one person. It should be shared.” That belief reflects exactly what Well Grounded hopes to achieve through its leadership retreats: building confident women leaders who strengthen their teams, transform their organisations and inspire change within their communities.
Irma’s story shows us that protecting the Congo Basin rainforest is about investing in the people who know these landscapes best. And these include the women of the Congo Basin. “When women have the opportunity to lead,” Irma says, “they become powerful protectors of both their communities and their forests.”
“When women have the opportunity to lead, they become powerful protectors of both their communities and their forests.”