Sisters Build a Greener, Healthier Future in Nigeria
Once the beautiful first capital of Nigeria, the city of Calabar has faced a severe decline in recent years because of a systemic collapse in waste management and infrastructure. Today, mountains of refuse block roads and trigger severe health risks, disproportionately affecting market women and traders who, on some days, due to piles of waste and unreliable transportation, cannot access the marketplace where they earn their subsistence income.
Sr. Franca of the Daughters of Charity wanted to address the waste emergency and knew she needed help to do it. Luckily, she knew the right people on the ground to call on - the local Sisters in Calabar. “The Sisters from the local orders were already providing education at all levels, healthcare and pastoral ministry, working with the community, homeless and destitute people,” Sr. Franca said. “They were well-placed to disseminate knowledge.”
Together, the Sisters devised a new initiative to advocate for a cleaner, healthier environment in Calabar, targeting local market women and their teenage daughters to become trained environmental advocates in their community. “We wanted to include teenage girls to promote successive planning and sustainability, while recognizing their zeal and enthusiasm to initiate change and impact systemic transformation,” Sr. Franca shared.
With help from a donor-funded SRW grant, Sr. Franca organized a three-day advocacy workshop for local women and girls with the theme “The Right to Live in a Clean, Green, and Health Environment.” Over the course of the workshop, attendees heard keynote presentations and lectures from Sisters, clergy, and local officials and discussed the Christian mandate to be good stewards of the Earth. They identified opportunities for stewardship and committed to becoming ambassadors for a clean planet. Speakers and participants also explored how environmental decay in Nigeria harms women and children and contributes to human trafficking and other dangers.
On the last day of training, Sisters and attendees visited three traditional rulers in the area and their council of chiefs to share their message of environmental stewardship. The visits were a resounding success. Sr. Franca shared, “The royal chiefs and their councils assured us of their willingness to collaborate and engage with the projects and to accompany the schools within their jurisdictions to follow up the implementation process.”
The Sisters further amplified their impact in a few ways. First, they partnered with a popular local radio station to broadcast the workshop in Calabar and nationwide, extending their reach far beyond the 65 original participants. Before the event, the station also interviewed Sr. Franca to promote the workshop and explain the positive impact a clean environment has on the community. In addition, upon completing the workshop, student attendees received seed money to start environmental clubs at their schools. “They cannot wait to share their new learnings with their peers,” Sr. Franca shared.
By empowering women and girls to take ownership of their environment, Sr. Franca and her fellow Sisters in Nigeria are sowing the seeds of long-term civic responsibility and ensuring Calabar becomes a cleaner, healthier, and safer place for the most vulnerable. Thank you to our donors for bringing their vision to life.
