Dare to Trust: a journey of culture, renewal, and empowerment of Sengwer women
Historically, the Sengwer community has lived in harmony with their environment, relying on forest resources for sustenance and integrating conservation into their daily lives. However, recent government policies aimed at forest protection have limited their access to these ancestral lands. Although these regulations intend to protect the environment, they often disregard the traditional conservation practices of indigenous communities like the Sengwer, who have been natural stewards of these lands for generations. Faced with these restrictions, the Segerger Women’s Conservation Group intensified their conservation efforts, viewing it as both a cultural duty and a means to safeguard their heritage.
Initially part of a mixed-gender group focused on conservation projects such as cultivating and selling native tree seedlings, the women felt marginalized as men often dominated decision-making without consulting them. This experience led the women to form their own group, allowing them to reclaim their voices and directly influence conservation work impacting their community.
With support from Dare to Trust, the women began re-establishing their projects independently. Today, their conservation efforts have grown significantly, with nurseries for indigenous tree species flourishing under their care. They have started planting these trees on family lands, and they plan to expand with more native trees and fruit-bearing plants to increase biodiversity and indigenous food security. Their progress is evident, as the women actively shape an environmental future that aligns with their cultural heritage and sustains their land.
Creative report: newspaper article and video
The support to the women's group was made possible within our Dare to Trust-project, a no-strings-attached way of funding. The only administrative duty was to send a creative report about the activities. The Sengwer of Embobut Community-Based Organisation, our partner who gave the grant to the women's group, has written a report, whilst some of their young members filmed interviews with some of the women of the group:
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