“We believe in our capacity as women to beautify the world. It comes naturally to us. We are givers and caretakers of life.”
River of Life is a project, by women for women, around the world, to express their solidarity with each other.
Make an impact by financially supporting a woman and her community, having ripple out effects throughout the whole ecovillage network.
The Global Ecovillage Network has outstanding women leaders at the forefront of community-led strategies for sustainable change. They are key figures in rights and peace movements, poverty reduction, food security, climate change and social justice and are united by an inspiring vision of developing together social, cultural, economic and ecological solutions for a hopeful future. They work at the local level, but also at national and regional levels, weaving their networks and bridging communities and scaling out solutions.
To learn more about how the River of Life emerged, go here.
We invite you to support a woman in the global south to work directly within her community, strengthening the social fabric while regenerating ecosystems and livelihoods. Help her in setting up community garden projects, developing ecovillage transition programs, green schools or starting community-based peace-building and conservation initiatives, by funding her financially as well as building a meaningful relationship.
It is your choice how deep you want to engage and how much you want to support. Decide if you want to remain anonymous, or build a closer relationship – communicate regularly, send gifts or even visit in person, bridging cultures and becoming a global friend to another woman. This experience not only impacts the life of another woman but your life as well.
You will experience the deep joy and satisfaction that it brings to support a woman who is doing holistic community work and watching her grow with the help of your contribution.
The River of life is a forum where women in leadership can excel and are able to do the work that they are doing through the support of fellow women. My relationship with the woman who has been supporting me for the past few years is more of a mentor/coach. It is much more than just somebody supporting me financially.
-Sonita Mbah
If you want to support the whole programme right now with a one-time donation click the donate now button below.
If you want to develop a closer relationship and financially support a woman long term (for more than one year), then please fill out this form and we will take the time to find the right match and level of support for you.
You are also invited to learn more or share information about River of Life with our downloadable programme brochure.
Please write to us at [email protected] if you have any questions or would like more information about this initiative.
Some of the women currently supported:
Visolela Namises from Namibia has been able to establish a community farm through the River of Life funds in recent years, which now serves 26 households, over 30 large families and some elderly people from the neighborhood. In addition, the farmers in the community were able to increase their income from the sale of crops to the local market and to a nearby ecotourism center. Furthermore, a pond was created to store 120.00 m3 of rainwater that is used during the dry season. Visolela is also currently working with women who manufacture handicrafts and traditional perfume.
Here is a link to a short video about Visolela – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvBu5tVrHZU
Linda Kabaira from Zimbabwe is a dedicated social worker who carries out projects with young women and schools and focuses on the creation of allotments as a tool for ecological regeneration. Working through SCOPE Zimbabwe (Schools and Colleges Permaculture Network), it promotes practices that promote sustainable food systems to help mitigate and adapt to climate change. It trains young women to grow staple foods and use permaculture techniques to increase soil fertility, collect water, and maximize crops. The women she works with can meet her household food needs with an abundance of diverse, nutrient-rich, chemical-free fruits and vegetables. Their gardens produce a surplus, which they sell to generate income. To learn more about Linda’s work, please read this story.
Sonita Mbah is combining an MSc in EcoSocial Design while representing the youth wing of GEN Africa. She is a facilitator at Better World Cameroon. Sonita can now dedicate herself to reconnect young people to the land and to youth entrepreneurship related to climate change adaptation. She is passionate about food security, cultural heritage and green economy as solutions to the growing rate of unemployment in rural Africa.
Sharmila Seyyid is a poet, writer, journalist, thought leader, a single mother, entrepreneur and activist. Through her community center, Mantra Life in Sri Lanka, she focuses on promoting sustainable living, improving health and well-being, environmental protection, peace and reconciliation and women’s empowerment. With the support of River of Life, Sharmila has initiated a women for women ecovillage transition project with Tamil speaking women in the north and central parts of the country.
‘The GEN network is populated with people of very high integrity, with their heart in the right place – beating for their community and their community that goes beyond the human community, standing up to protect their environments. Also we have people who don’t have a closed system view, see their community extending far beyond their country, all over the world, so it is very special people that are engaged.‘
-Kosha Joubert
