Indigenous leaders reconnect around Kahuzi-Biega for the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples
The celebration of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples (IDWIP) in August provided an opportunity this year to take stock of Indigenous leadership around Kahuzi-Biega National Park (KBNP) in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. It also offered a chance to see how much has changed as communities continue to adapt to conflict and political tension.
An escalation of conflict in eastern DRC meant that in-person activities to celebrate the 2025 IDWIP had to be cancelled. This year, Indigenous leaders found ways to reconnect across the region, in a vibrant series of IDWIP activities that combined online participation with smaller locally facilitated gatherings.
For Well Grounded, these activities offered more than an opportunity to mark an international day. They provided a moment to see the Indigenous Leadership Programme in action: Indigenous leaders taking increasing responsibility for creating spaces for dialogue, bringing community priorities forward and connecting with others working around the park.
Building Indigenous leadership from within
Building Indigenous leadership from withinWell Grounded’s Indigenous Leadership Programme supports Indigenous leaders to strengthen their confidence, capacity for collective action and ability to influence decisions affecting their territories. The programme is guided and driven by an Indigenous Leadership Ambassador Circle made up of Indigenous leaders from communities around KBNP.
The Circle now designs activities, facilitates exchanges, hosts radio programmes, raises community concerns and develops proposals. The organisation of activities to celebrate the IDWIP – an important moment in the calendar for Indigenous communities – offered a visible opportunity to put these skills into practice.
Finding ways to connect despite insecurity
The ability to hold these activities was itself significant. Insecurity, long distances and uneven connectivity continue to make travel and participation difficult across eastern DRC.
The Ambassador Circle adapted the format, combining a Zoom gathering with smaller local events facilitated by Circle members and Indigenous focal points. This enabled people in different locations to participate without requiring everyone to travel.
The approach brought together 46 registered participants from Bukavu, Goma, Kabare, Kalonge, Bunyakiri and other areas around the park.
For Circle members, the process demonstrated not only their ability to adapt activities to difficult circumstances, but their growing capacity to organise and lead them.
Indigenous women bring knowledge into the conversation
“Even though we were expelled from our forest, we continue to protect it. Because if the forest is destroyed, how will future generations live without it?”
— Indigenous woman leader from Kabare
One of the IDWIP activities brought together Batwa leaders and other actors working around Kahuzi-Biega, with a particular focus on Indigenous women who are traditional midwives and birth attendants from Bukavu, Kalonge, Kabare and Bunyakiri.
By sharing their experience, the women highlighted how knowledge of medicinal plants, pregnancy care and childbirth connects health, cultural heritage and biodiversity. They also spoke about challenges facing their communities, including distance from health services, restrictions on access to some forest resources, insecurity and the weakening transmission of knowledge between generations.
Crucially, the discussion moved beyond sharing experiences. The women proposed practical responses, including community gardens for medicinal plants, ethical documentation of traditional knowledge, stronger dialogue with health services and greater participation of women in the co-management of the park.
Their contribution illustrates the value of Indigenous leadership: communities are not only affected by decisions about conservation. They hold knowledge, experience and ideas that can help shape how the forest and its resources are managed.
From participation to influence
The IDWIP activities offered a snapshot of a broader shift taking place through the Indigenous Leadership Programme.
Members of the Ambassador Circle are increasingly moving from participating in activities organised by others to creating and leading their own. They are facilitating discussions, using radio to share community perspectives, connecting communities with civil society and conservation actors, and developing proposals around issues that matter to their communities.
The ambition now is to build on this momentum: moving beyond individual activities towards sustained collective action, with clear priorities, responsibilities and resources.
For Well Grounded, the role is not to speak for communities or determine their priorities, but to help create the conditions for Indigenous leaders and organisations to build their skills, connect with one another and strengthen their power to act.
Around Kahuzi-Biega, IDWIP 2026 offered a chance to pause and reflect. After a year in which conflict prevented communities from coming together in person, Indigenous leaders were once again creating their own spaces for connection and dialogue — and increasingly using those spaces to turn community knowledge and priorities into collective action.
