After a rigorous selection and review process, AWARD is pleased to announce the onboarding of 53 outstanding Climate Fellows into the second cohort of the Accelerating African Women’s Leadership in Climate Action Fellowship.

Drawn from 48 institutions across Benin, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, and Senegal, the new Climate Fellows will undertake a two-year Fellowship tailored to strengthening their leadership, mentoring, and negotiation skills to navigate, thrive, and influence change at all levels.

The 53 Climate Fellows are working on a diversity of topics, including investigating the promise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to revolutionize farmers’ access to weather information and innovative climate-smart tools, climate adaptation and diplomacy, disaster risk management, climate finance and smallholder climate awareness, and reporting, nutrition, natural resource management, and the intersection of climate research and policy to enhance resilience and food security.

With increasing unpredictable climate patterns, smallholder farmers are constantly subjected to challenging and unique risks. The Adaptation Gap Report 2024 warns that developing countries face an annual deficit of up to US$359 billion in adaptation finance. For smallholders, this shortfall translates to delayed vital funding for seeds, water, credit, and critical early warning information, which can cushion them against climate shocks and further boost food security.

Through the Fellowship, AWARD is increasing the number of African women leading climate adaptation innovation, not only to close the gender gap but also to respond to the priorities of smallholder farmers across Africa.

The 53 Climate Fellows join an expanding network of 47 climate professionals, all working to catalyze equitable, inclusive climate solutions.

The new Climate Fellows began their Fellowship journey with a Women’s Leadership and Negotiation Skills Course, the first intervention under the Fellowship. Following the leadership course, they will commence their second training, the Gender in Climate Change Adaptation course, designed to sharpen their ability to design and implement gender-responsive climate interventions.

About the Fellowship

Informed by the innovative AWARD Fellowship model, the Fellowship is designed as a blended (virtual and face-to-face interventions), non-residential career accelerator under the CLARE programme. CLARE is bridging critical gaps between science and action by championing Southern leadership to enable socially inclusive and sustainable action to build resilience to climate change and natural hazards. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of the UK government, IDRC or its Board of Governors. Learn more about CLARE: http://www.clareprogramme.org/. The Fellowship is implemented by African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD).