Cameroon’s Network of Sustainable Development Actors amplifies the voices of women from the forests amid COP30

November 24, 2025

The Network of Sustainable Development Actors (RADD), a Cameroon-based organization, organized a forest immersion experience for women on November 17, 2025, while COP30 was taking place in Brazil. This initiative aimed to reconnect women in the Congo Basin with forests and empower them as key actors in climate change mitigation and conservation efforts. The program included panel discussions, forest activities, seed fairs, and meetings with forest representatives, targeting six categories of women including those near agro-industries, seed guardians, product processors, urban women, indigenous people, and young forest advocates.

Who is affected

Women living near agro-industries affected by palm oil, sugarcane, and rubber plantations
Women from community seed banks serving as local seed guardians
Female processors of agricultural, pastoral, and non-timber forest products
Urban women disconnected from forest resources
Indigenous peoples and first forest inhabitants
Young people from forest communities (the "forest representatives")
Poor communities in the Congo Basin bearing the impacts of climate change
Decision-makers in Cameroon's government
Future generations dependent on forest preservation

What action is being taken

RADD is conducting forest immersion experiences for women in Cameroon
The organization is holding panel discussions on "the world's future without forests and water" and "Gender and climate finance"
Participants are engaging in forest activities including evening forest stays, agroecological seed fairs, tree planting, documentary screenings, and meetings with forest representatives
RADD is strengthening the group of forest representatives who attended the COP30 Hub
The organization is working to integrate forest seeds into their seed system development program
Women are proposing endogenous solutions to climate challenges
RADD is seeking additional support and partnerships for their initiatives

Why it matters

This initiative matters because forests in the Congo Basin, like the Amazon, represent critical solutions to climate change as "the earth's lungs," yet vulnerable communities experience climate impacts while being excluded from major climate discussions. Women have a unique relationship with forests and nature, making them essential actors in conservation efforts, but colonialism, extractive industries, and large-scale projects have systematically distanced them from forest resources and eroded their connection to conservation. By empowering women as frontline climate actors rather than passive recipients of solutions, RADD is addressing both climate change and social equity, while strengthening seed sovereignty and local food systems against manufactured goods and synthetic fertilizers that contribute to climate change. The initiative serves as a call to Cameroonian decision-makers to recognize women as leading actors in drafting and implementing national climate plans, ensuring that grassroots knowledge and solutions are incorporated into policy.

What's next

RADD will strengthen the forest representatives group by providing them resources to continue protecting and developing forests
The organization plans to integrate forest seeds into the seed system development program managed by RADD
RADD intends to seek additional support and partnerships to sustain their initiatives
The organization will continue strengthening women's capacity to understand global climate challenges
Cameroonian women are seeking partners to help implement their proposed endogenous climate solutions

Read full article from source: Global Voices