Today we are celebrating International Women’s Day, 8th March 2021, by recognising the dedicated and ambitious women leading landscape restoration as part of the Endangered Landscapes Programme – from fieldwork, to science and monitoring, to communication and community engagement. This year’s theme is ‘Choose to Challenge‘ – a concept which aligns well with the ELP’s ambition to challenge the status quo, whether that be redefining relationship with nature, ‘traditional’ conservation approaches to conserving biodiversity (and instead aiming to restore populations), the scale at which we work, or indeed the representation and inclusion of people in project delivery – regardless of gender, race or orientation.
Below we will hear from a number of inspiring women who are involved in delivering ELP-funded projects, and together are helping to realise the programme’s vision for landscapes which are self-sustaining, and able to benefit nature and people for generations to come.
Martina Spada
Martina manages the Ticino River Basin project, led by Istituto Oikos – an NGO that operates in Europe and in the South of the world to safeguard biodiversity and to promote the widespread adoption of more sustainable lifestyles. She is an Italian-born naturalist, with a background in bat conservation and research. She has worked for Istituto Oikos since 2009. 
What interests you about restoration?
Working for restoration gives me the possibility to see how quickly nature takes back its spaces after the changes – small or big – we are able to make. But to have deep and lasting effects in our landscapes, restoration has to deal with many aspects, and that is what is most interesting to me. Restoration means not only ameliorating habitats and the conservation status of species but also changing governing processes, citizens’ attitudes and customs and promoting more sustainable economic activities. All this is highly challenging but very rewarding if we are able to succeed.
What message would you want to send to young women interested in restoration/rewilding?
Study hard, nurture your interests, confront yourself with different tasks and always give as much as you can without expecting an immediate reward. In my fifteen years of experience in conservation I can say that competence is a key but it’s not enough. What are valued most and will drive you far are passion and dedication. There will be obstacles but if you keep your passion intact, you’ll find a way to obtain what you are craving for.
What does ‘choose to challenge’ mean to you?
First of all, to me it means challenge myself and my limits, improving who I am from a personal and working point of view. In my job, when taking on a new difficult challenge I often find myself out of my comfort zone. It’s tough but I always find new strength and a little bit more self-confidence! As a conservationist and as a woman I often confront myself with challenges – big or small – and inner strength is what allows me to carry on and trying to make the difference every day.
Esra Kartal
Esra is the Communications Manager at the Mediterranean Conservation Society (MCS-AKD), the local implementing partner for the marine Gökova Bay – Cape Gelidonya project in southwestern Turkey. Her interest in conservation work began 25 years ago when she learned on the plight of the Endangered Northern Bald Ibis due to the high use of DDT in agriculture. In 2015, Esra and a friend set up Avukma Women’s Cooperative in 2015 to support women’s social and economic empowerment. 
What interests you about restoration?
Bird watching taught me that habitat degradation is directly linked to species’ welfare in the immediate future. For this reason, I strongly believe that all conservation work needs to have restoration and rehabilitation components to bring maximum benefit to endangered species. Moreover, conservation work on critical marine species like the Mediterranean Monk Seal and Posidonia oceanica need to be complemented with consideration for traditional fishing activities and the food and beverage sector at large, whose livelihoods depend on marine resources. Taking a holistic approach in conservation/restoration work is essential for the future wellbeing of the marine ecosystem and the small-scale sustainable fishing practices.
Which of your achievements are you most proud of?
In 2015 I started working on an MCS project that focuses on supporting fisherwomen. Since then, I’ve witnessed first-hand that the perception of women in the fishing profession changed for the better. In 2015, I believed that one of the biggest challenges we had was the absence of fisherwomen in Fisheries Cooperative. We’ve reached a point where, today, there is a fisherwomen commission at the Fisheries Cooperatives’ Central Union which represents 30,0000 fishers. Back in 2015, women’s absence in fishing cooperatives also meant that there was no official count on the number of women in the profession. MCS’s research on this subject revealed that location and number of fisherwomen in the country – which was much higher than previously estimated. Being a part of this project and winning fisherwomen a ‘seat at the table’ are some of my proudest achievements.
This year’s theme is ‘choose to challenge’. What does that mean to you?
I challenge the idea that some jobs are suitable only for men, especially fishing. I strongly believe that labour does not have gender. I also think women’s issues are not women’s issues but societal issues. Ignoring women’s significance in family and societal settings leads to inconveniences that affect not only women but also all humans and societal structures. For this reason, I challenge all gender-based discrimination.
Ana Catarina Pereira Nunes
Ana is a Conservation Officer at ATNatureza – the local implementation partner organisation for the Greater Côa Valley project. Her role is to coordinate the monitoring for the project, and lead on stewardship agreements for grassland restoration. Ana’s holds a Bachelor’s in Biology and Geology, and Master’s in Ecology from the University of Minho. 
What’s the most important piece of advice you’ve received?
Never forget that we are always in constant learning! And it is the purest of truths, to consolidate an idea, we must listen to others and with our own knowledge to build our opinion. Working for nature conservation is proof of that, we have to know how to listen to others to be heard and to be able to show what are the best choices and what are the advantages for protecting the environment and restoring ecosystems.
Which of your achievements are you most proud of?
Getting a degree in science and nature conservation, which has always been one of my dreams, was a great achievement! It takes whole-hearted dedication to work in this area. To be able to share my passion for nature with others, to be able to always contribute more and better to the conservation and increase of biodiversity, to be able to collaborate in the creation of spaces for nature, which is one the objectives and the main of the association in which I work and still being able to make my contribution to the changes in mentalities is undoubtedly one of my greatest achievements and that is constantly growing, and really something that I am very proud of!
What does ‘choose to challenge’ mean to you?
Challenges, it was always what makes me move! For me, life must be rich in challenges; without them it doesn’t make sense. Being a wildlife biologist, it is a profession that must be lived with body and soul. Sometimes, we face many challenges. Perhaps the biggest one is the lack of understanding of some conservation measures with the local community. This is something that requires a lot of patience and dedication, always, in favour of nature conservation.
Dr Nancy Ockendon
Nancy is the Science Manager for the Endangered Landscapes Programme, supporting the projects we fund to improve understanding and knowledge of how to effectively restore landscapes and natural processes. Before this role, Nancy worked for several conservation NGOs and also within the university as a research ecologist. 
What message would you want to send to young women interested in restoration/rewilding?
We need you! There are amazing women working in all sorts of roles across the ELP-funded projects, doing fantastic work ranging from project management to science and monitoring to communications and fundraising. I feel really privileged to be working with such dedicated, knowledgeable – and also funny! – women. Although more women are starting out in conservation jobs, it is still difficult to make a career, and we need to ensure employers and roles can be flexible to encourage trained and experienced conservationists to stay in conservation for the long term.
Which of your achievements are you most proud of?
Maintaining a career in conservation for over 15 years and (on the whole) managing to balance work and family life. I am also proud to have chosen roles and projects where I hope I can make a difference to nature on the ground.
What does ‘choose to challenge’ mean to you?
It suggests that we have a choice. We can choose to speak up or act to ensure that everyone is given a voice and a chance to be heard or we can choose to stay silent. Sometimes it is easier to stay silent, so we may need to challenge ourselves to get outside our comfort zone as well as calling out others.
Sian Stacey
Sian is the Project Development Officer for the Summit to Sea project in Mid Wales which is currently hosted by RSPB Cymru. This is a really exciting project which is co-designing a future where nature and people thrive in the area. By using co-design principles we’re going beyond traditional consultation by building and deepening equal collaboration between people affected by, or attempting to, resolve the challenges we face, such as the biodiversity and climate crisis. It’s a great opportunity to work with a really wide range of people passionate about our futures. Before this role I was Warden of Ynys Enlli (Bardsey Island) a small island off the tip of the North Wales coastline where every day was dictated by the weather and tides. 
What’s the most important piece of advice you’ve received?
The most important piece of advice I’ve received is that everybody likes to be asked for their advice on something. I constantly test my understanding of things, and aim to keep an open mind whilst seeking those with differing opinions to bring these together and find a shared understanding. I think it’s important that we’re not afraid to seek advice from those around us.
What message would you want to send to young women interested in restoration/rewilding?
Listening and empathy are key. We’re facing what often feels like a terrifying and insurmountable climate and biodiversity crisis. We are all reacting to this in different ways. We must be good listeners, listening to the warnings of nature, of scientists but importantly to the people whose livelihoods depend on our nature resources. Having empathy and an understanding of those whose lives will be most affected by the changes to our planet is key, often those most effected are those most connected to nature.
What does ‘choose to challenge’ mean to you?
For me it means both challenging myself and the structures and society around me to make sure that we are equal and as inclusive as possible. Perhaps historically there haven’t been enough well known women role models which inspire us that are a reflection of ourselves. However, I can think of countless women in restoration and agriculture that inspire me daily. But, we now need to challenge if we really are reflecting the whole range of people in our society, female, non-binary, male, LGBT+ and the whole range of ethnicities of our diverse society. We need to come together to tackle the biggest challenges of our, and future, generations.
We thank all contributors for sharing their experiences for International Women’s Day today, and their efforts to help deliver landscapes for life.
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