FOR ALL WOMEN AND GIRLS – SHINING A LIGHT OF WOMEN LEADING CONSERVATION

8 March marks International Women’s Day and this year’s theme—“ Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls”—calls for us all to advocate for and play a role in dismantling barriers to equal justice.

Despite being disproportionately impacted by environmental and economic shocks, women as well as children, youth, people living with disability and other groups are often marginalised from making decisions about natural resource management, climate change adaptation and other issues that directly impact their daily lives.

In Solomon Islands and the Mekong subregion, WWF have been working to enhance Gender Equity, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) at organisational, programming and community levels. The aim is to strengthen the voice of vulnerable and marginalised people, including women, so that they can participate in decision-making and enhance their leadership opportunities across community-based conservation and nature-based solution projects.

At WWF, women like Angellah and Eli are leading this important work, collaborating with fellow staff and community members to build a more inclusive future. Below, they share their reflections on International Women’s Day, and why it is critical we strive to support rights, equality and empowerment for all women and girls.

Angellah Anisi Country Manager, WWF-Solomon Islands

I’ve spent my career partnering closely with communities across Solomon Islands including in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), education reform and now conservation. These experiences have profoundly shaped my commitment to gender and social inclusion.

I’ve seen how much women and girls contribute every day, often quietly and without recognition, yet their voices don’t always make it into the spaces where decisions are made. Moving into conservation with WWF has strengthened my belief that inclusion isn’t a “nice to have”—it’s essential for sustainable outcomes.

This year’s International Women’s Day theme, “Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls,” speaks directly to that. For me, it’s a call to ensure that every woman, including those with disabilities and those in remote communities, has the opportunity, confidence and support to participate meaningfully.

At WWF-Solomon Islands, we try to approach this in a very practical, community-driven way by listening, creating safe spaces, and working alongside people rather than pushing change onto them. Changing norms takes time, and I’ve learnt the value of patience, respect and consistent engagement. As a woman working in community development and conservation, I’ve been in rooms where I’m the only woman, but I’ve also felt incredible support from other women and allies along the way.

My hope is that the next generation of women will not have to fight for space—they will simply walk into it, fully recognised as leaders shaping the wellbeing of their communities and the environment we all depend on.

WWF-Solomon Islands, in partnership with WWF-Australia, is supporting communities in Western Province to adopt nature-based solutions that manage and utilise sea grapes sustainably, strengthen community governance and improve women’s livelihoods. This project is supported by the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP).

Learn more about WWF-Solomon Island’s work here.

Elizabeth (Eli) Thipphawong Senior Advisor Gender and Inclusive Conservation, WWF Asia-Pacific

I’m Lao Diaspora, born and raised in a northern rural community in Canada, and had always wanted to connect more to my heritage. I eventually moved to Vientiane, Laos in 2017 to work with a women’s rights organisation, and while it was a dream come true, I was out of my depth in so many ways. The support, patience and guidance I received from my colleagues and community in those first years gave me space to learn about Laos through a local feminist lens and to carve out my own work in the gender equity, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI) and environment field, which eventually led me to WWF.

This past year has been unlike others in terms of equity and inclusion work. Global funding cuts to programs specifically targeting GEDSI work and marginalised communities, along with the global rise in regressive laws, policy rollbacks, and funding reductions for essential services, have created real uncertainty and risk. Many of us are holding both deep commitment to our work and communities, and very real fear and frustration for the future. For me, the theme Rights, Justice and Action represents a refusal to step back. It means choosing to protect hard-earned gains, standing in solidarity with those most affected, and taking meaningful action so that future generations can look back and see that we supported each other and continued to push forward as a collective.

I’m very excited to be part of the new Mekong Regional Gender Equity, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) Program. It’s a significant step forward because it strengthens coordinated efforts to advance inclusion through both internal capacity and systems strengthening, as well as in our community partnerships and conservation approach. What makes it particularly meaningful is that it builds upon and amplifies the steady work that local teams, communities, and partners have been doing for years.

Learning from my colleagues and the communities where we work empowers me to create practical, useful GEDSI tools and resources that everyone can feel represented in. When I think about “changing norms,” I think about the systems we work within, the policies, practices and power structures that influence our work. Inequality is reinforced not just by social attitudes but by institutions, so for me, changing norms is about challenging those systems. It’s about questioning default ways of working that unintentionally exclude people, and redesigning them to be more just, inclusive and fair.

Working in community development and conservation, I experience the sector not just as a woman, but through all aspects of my identity: my ethnicity, nationality, disability and the different privileges and barriers that come with them. It’s really about intersectionality: how these identities shape the spaces I am part of, and the opportunities or challenges I encounter. Women have always been part of conservation. This is not new, but what is changing is our willingness to speak openly about safety, inclusion and power. More than ever, we are having honest conversations about what it takes to work in this field as women, and what needs to happen to make conservation safer and more accessible for everyone.

Eli’s work is part of the Mekong Regional Gender Equity, Disability and Social Inclusion program (MRGP). The program is implemented in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam, together with local WWF offices and community groups. This program is delivered in partnership with the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP), with the support of Deloitte.

Learn more about the Mekong GEDSI program here.