Sevidzem Ernestine Leikeki

Sevidzem Ernestine Leikeki (born 1985) is a climate activist from Cameroon and in 2021 was awarded as a BBC 100 Women, for "women who create lasting change". She is a climate and gender activist from the North-West region of Cameroon, and she is the founder of Cameroon Gender and Environment Watch. She has worked to stop child trafficking, in 2010, in the North West of Cameroon. and won the Gender Just Climate Solutions prize for transformational solutions, in 2019 and also in 2021.

Early life and career Leikeki was born in 1985, and has four children. Her community is located in a forest and farmland area which supplies firewood, but experiences poverty. She is an activist working towards gender equity in environmental protection and empowerment of girls and women. Leikeki was awarded a bachelor's degree in common law from the University of Yaounde II.

By 2020, her organisation had planted 86,000 trees, for climate mitigation, as well as providing environmental education. Her project aims to advocate for women's and girls' socio-economic and environmental rights, and promoting women's voices. Cameroon Gender and Environment Watch (CAMGEW), her organisation, also helps women escape domestic violence, and has assisted 800 women.

Media

Leikeki gave a TED talk in 2010, on "A 'forest generation', living in harmony with nature". She was a speaker at the Global Landscapes Forum, and has been in the media for her environmental and climate change work.

Prizes and awards

2021 – BBC 100 Women. 2019 – Gender Just Climate Solutions winner.