grantees » José Martial Betoulet Bangala
José Martial Betoulet Bangala, Central African Republic
This grantee is still in the process of their leadership development with the JWH initiative. This profile will be completed once the grantee has finalised their activities.
Born in Bayanga, a village in the Central African Republic(CAR), José Martial Betoulet Bangala is an intelligent young environmentalist. José currently works at APDS (Aires Protégées Dzanga-Sangha), a national park coordinated by the Central African Ministry for Water and Forests. José’s tasks include setting up and managing regional environmental youth initiatives in the villages and schools of the reserve. José has been recognized by his talent as a communicator and this has earned him the trust of his community. The Dzangha-Sangha fishermen have chosen him as the representative of their rights and interests, becoming co-founder and coordinator of their local civil society organization “Association pour le Développement Sangha-Sangha”.
José’s ancestral land and people have been experiencing issues which have forced him to take action. Firstly, degradation of the Dzanga-Sangha environment has been increasing, secondly, no study on the development and culture of his community has ever been taken. Lastly, the majority of his region’s management positions belong to people from the capital of the CAR or to foreigners.
“As somebody native to this region, I feel I can draw from the strong connection I have to this place and its people to support the sustainable and integral development of our communities and environment.”
José plans to use his JWH Initiative grant to fix the environmental, cultural and leadership issues of his region by taking an intensive distance-learning course of two years in Environmental Management. This course will increase his environmental knowledge in order to improve the environment of his region. José also plans on improving his project management skills in order to better work with the youth and communities on protecting the environment. Lastly, the course will assist José in improving his leadership capacities. This will help him in recognizing community members with the potential to help him promote the internal cohesion and representation of the community. His experience and devotion to his region will be of decisive use to him in his development as a leader.