GFGI Climate Action Grant Post-Project Evaluation
Written by: Mako Mori
On January 26 and 28, the WFWPI Office for UN Relations in New York held the GFGI Climate Action Grant Post-Project Evaluations for 12 projects which were awarded funds through GFGI in the summer of 2021. The purpose of this meeting was to review the challenges and best practices of each project, as well as to receive feedback on any challenges. It is vital to continue to adapt each program to meet the unique needs of their communities. In order for a project to be sustainable, we must be able to honestly discuss what worked, what didn’t work and redetermine to give support to our chapters worldwide where it is needed.
In the first part of the program, each of the projects was presented for five to seven minutes. It was truly inspiring to see how their visions were actualized in reality over the course of a few months. Of course, not everything went perfectly according to plan, and there were unexpected hurdles along the way, but this meeting helped to view the challenges as an opportunity to grow the projects, rather than as an obstacle. All of the projects told impactful stories of creative climate adaptation initiatives, including inspiring stories of unified efforts of women leaders, which displayed resilience and resourcefulness as a hopeful approach to solving the planetary emergency we are experiencing.
WFWP Albania’s Reduce-Reuse-Recycle Campaign made waves on Albania’s news station and schools. They encouraged young people to mobilize for an awareness campaign on the excessive use of plastic bags and bottles and the pollution that it caused in Albania including the Adriatic Sea. WFWP Brazil was able to provide 200 families with clean drinking water along the coast of the Amazon River. Used tires in Paraguay are now repurposed into beautiful park planters. Babies in Limpopo, South Africa are now using environmentally clean and income-generating cloth nappies. The solar lamp projects are lighting homes in Kenya, Mali and South Africa, helping women and children to be productive even after sunset. From the environmental awareness campaign in Burkina Faso, the reforestation project in Zambia, to the Permaculture Literacy Program in the Philippines, WFWP chapters are creating a wave of women-empowering climate adaptation initiatives, influencing young minds and helping shape local policies towards mindfulness and earth-healing lifestyles.
The second part of the meeting was led by Ms. Merly Barlaan, CAO and Deputy Director of the WFWPI Office for UN Relations in NY, who gave training on the “Key Components of Sustainable Projects” from conceptualization to institutionalization. Ms. Barlaan spoke in-depth about Project Management, Partnership Opportunities, and Fundraising and Sustainability. In her presentation, Ms. Barlaan emphasized the importance of framing our messages and aligning our projects to the local and national agenda as it is integral to the process of creating partnerships and finding sponsors who resonate with our vision. She spoke briefly about how to maximize each project's potential to raise funds and seize the opportunity since many countries have pledged to allocate funds as part of their national commitment towards Net Zero 2050. Practical and optimistic, Ms. Barlaan shared proven methods to expand and further sustain each project.
The third portion of the meeting was led by Ms. Amber Lefevre, a WFWPI Office for UN Relations NY intern. Ms. Lefevre conducted research on each of the country’s environmental promises and plans. The reason for this is so that each of the countries attending this meeting would be more aware of their own country’s plan for the future. When the projects can supplement and help the country reach its goals, the government is most likely to grant funding. Many of the project leaders expressed their gratitude to Ms. Amber for her dedicated efforts to provide promising research and resources that could help them in developing future partnerships and areas of focus.
The meeting culminated with gratitude to each of the chapter’s investment and dedication to women and the environment.
