grantees » Periementah Kutchoteh Ndzefemmegho

Periementah is very committed to his work of restoring the environment in Cameroon. He has been one of the key actors responsible for the Centre for Nursery Development and Eru Propagation’s (CENDEP’s) successful introduction of analog forestry in the North West Region of Cameroon. The organization focuses primarily on plant domestication and restoring degraded forest lands. Periementah contributes to CENDEP by providing technical assistance to clients seeking sustainable forestry techniques, proposing strategies for CENDEP’s extension initiatives, and liaising with the government and other institutions on forestry-related issues. His high level of education along with his passion for his subject propels Periementah along the path to making large strides in the field of climate change and forestry management.

Though already enthusiastic and highly professional, Periementah wanted to develop his leadership abilities and management practices. Periementah used his JWH Initiative grant to attend a course on Climate Change Governance at Wageningen Agricultural University in the Netherlands. In this class, Periementah learned about climate change vulnerability and adaptation, mitigation options, advocacy, and negotiation processes. Periementah can now better understand the governance structures related to climate change adaptation and how they can be used in his own country of Cameroon to combat the negative impacts of climate change. Periementah also learned to incorporate a more social component to his work; he says that he has “learned how to engage and involve different stakeholders in the implementation of field projects” .

His next plan as a young environmental leader is to share this knowledge with local communities. Periementah will discuss how changes in their day to day activities, along with changes made by the government at a structural level, can help mitigate the effects of climate change. Periementah’s ultimate goal is to “ become an advocate for the protection of forested landscapes as well as improving the livelihoods of forest dwelling communities”.