Odita Sunday 
SheLeads Fellows Plant Over 60 Trees Across Nigeria’s Six Geopolitical Zones in Nationwide Climate Action Exercise
Twenty young Nigerian women enrolled in the SheLeads Green Jobs Fellowship have collectively planted over 60 trees across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones as part of their Foundation Phase practical activity, marking the fellowship’s first major visible act of climate action since its launch on 3 June 2026.
The tree planting exercise, which forms the first of four practical activities embedded into the fellowship’s 12-week curriculum, was carried out across Rivers, Taraba, Kano, Oyo, and Abia States and the Federal Capital Territory. Rather than planting in isolation, fellows deliberately chose to carry out the exercise in schools and orphanage homes, bringing children and teenagers into the activity as active participants. For many of the children involved, it was the first time they had ever planted a tree. Their excitement was visible, and the conversations that followed about climate change, food security, and environmental restoration gave the exercise a reach that extended well beyond the 20 fellows themselves.
The Abuja component of the exercise took place on Saturday 27 June 2026 at Abuja Children’s Home, where fellows planted a variety of fruit trees including mango, pawpaw, black currant, lemon, and moringa trees. The session was vibrant and hands-on, with children from the home participating directly alongside the fellows in what organisers described as one of the most memorable activities of the fellowship cycle so far.
“When you educate a woman, you educate a nation. This practical exercise is part of our broader goal to position young women to take leadership in the green economy and benefit from the National Climate Change Fund and other emerging opportunities. We are not just training them. We are moving them into action and implementation. Every tree planted today is proof that these women are not waiting to be ready. They already are.”
Faith Kaminus, Director of Programs and Strategy, The Ebaidebheki Initiative (TEI)
The SheLeads Green Jobs Fellowship is a 17-week programme comprising 12 weeks of intensive expert-led online training followed by a mandatory 4-week internship placement with partner organisations. The curriculum is structured around four practical activities delivered every three weeks, ensuring fellows translate knowledge directly into real-world action at every stage of their learning. The tree planting exercise is the first of these four practicals, followed by a Waste-to-Wonder upcycling exercise, a community advocacy project, and a capstone research brief.
The programme received 217 applications in under three weeks of its announcement going live, reflecting the significant and largely unmet demand among young Nigerian women for structured, practical pathways into Nigeria’s growing green economy. Cohort 1 comprises 20 fellows drawn from all six geopolitical zones of Nigeria, ensuring the fellowship reflects the full breadth of the country’s geography and cultural diversity.
The fellowship is designed to directly address the structural barriers that keep women out of Nigeria’s technical green sectors, including the skills gap, the experience gap, and the leadership pipeline gap, at the very moment when Nigeria’s green economy is being formed. With the activation of the Federal Government’s $2 billion National Climate Change Fund and the launch of the National Carbon Market, the opportunities available to trained young women in this space have never been greater. The SheLeads Green Jobs Fellowship exists to ensure those opportunities do not pass women by.
The Ebaidebheki Initiative is calling on organisations, corporate bodies, and development partners to join in expanding the fellowship’s reach. Partnership opportunities include internship hosting, financial sponsorship of programme activities, and mentorship for current and future fellows.
About The Ebaidebheki Initiative (TEI)
The Ebaidebheki Initiative is a registered Nigerian non-governmental organisation working at the intersection of youth, gender, and climate action. TEI designs and delivers programmes that build climate literacy, green economy skills, and environmental advocacy capacity among young Nigerians, with a particular focus on girls and women. TEI is the convener of the Climate Teen Summit 2026, the largest teen-led climate advocacy summit in Africa, and the SheLeads Green Jobs Fellowship, Nigeria’s first women-only green jobs programme.
Notes to Editors
Photographs from the Abuja Children’s Home tree planting exercise are available upon request. Interviews with the Director of Programs and Strategy and with SheLeads Cohort 1 fellows can be arranged through the contact details below.
For Media Enquiries and Partnership Discussions:
Faith Kaminus
Director of Programs and Strategy
The Ebaidebheki Initiative (TEI)
+234 70 6461 7817 | ebaidebhekiinitiative@gmail.com
theebaidebhekiini
tiative.org | @tei_advocacy
About the Author
