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Women's Media Initiative for Sustainable Environment

About WISE

Women's Media Initiative for Sustainable Environment

Learn about WISE — a Ugandan women-led NGO founded to amplify grassroots women's voices in environmental justice, climate action, land rights, and media advocacy across Uganda and East Africa.

Who We Are

Women’s Media Initiative for Sustainable Environment (WISE) is a Ugandan women led non governmental organization dedicated to strengthening the voices, agency, and leadership of grassroots women and girls in natural resource governance. Cultural norms have long silenced women and limited their participation in decision making. WISE addresses this gap by equipping women to tell their own stories and use those stories to influence decisions on land, natural resources, climate resilience, and environmental justice.

We were founded in response to growing socio economic, environmental, and gender inequalities linked to extractive industries and large-scale land investments. These developments have displaced communities, eroded livelihoods, and further marginalized women from key decision making spaces. At the same time, women’s knowledge and solutions remain underrepresented in media and policy debates. WISE works to ensure women are heard, supported, and organized to drive collective action, engage leaders, and demand accountability.

We believe that when women and girls have the tools, platforms, and safe spaces to document and share their experiences, they can transform policies, shift narratives, and build movements for lasting change.

WISE works at the intersection of gender, environment, and media - recognizing that women's voices are essential to solving the climate and environmental crises facing Uganda and East Africa.

Women's Media Initiative for Sustainable Environment

Our Vision

A Uganda where women and girls are heard, respected, and able to influence decisions affecting their environment and livelihoods.

Our Mission

To build the confidence and capacity of grassroots women and girls to tell their stories, strengthen their collective voice, and drive change through media, advocacy, and movement building.
To Strengthen Women's Voices, Leadership, and Action for Environmental Justice

What Guides Us

Our Values

Women-Led

We are a women-led organization, and we center women's leadership in everything we do.

Grassroots-First

We prioritize the voices and needs of grassroots and marginalized communities.

Storytelling as Power

We believe stories are tools for justice, accountability, and transformation.

Safety and Dignity

We are committed to safe, ethical, and survivor-centered approaches.

Environmental Justice

We work for a just and sustainable relationship between people and the planet.

Accountability

We hold ourselves and power structures accountable to communities.

Our Commitment to Women and Girls

WISE is committed to the safety, dignity, and empowerment of all women and girls we work with. We create safe spaces for women to speak, learn, and lead.