Environment and Climate
From rising plantain prices to twenty trees in Yaoundé
Kristy-Marc Mafue Melo started Women for a Greener Cameroon, which has planted 20 trees in Yaoundé, trained about 13 girls in sustainable environmental practices and built a prototype farm app.
The prices of staples like plantains and cassava have been on a steady rise in recent years. Kristy-Marc Mafue Melo started asking why. After some research, she says, she learned that one major reason is soil degradation caused by deforestation. "In many communities, trees are cut down to create more farmland, but over time this damages the soil, reduces productivity, and makes farming even harder," she says. "It becomes a cycle that affects everyone."
That is why Women for a Greener Cameroon exists. WGC works with farmers to promote agroforestry, planting trees alongside cash crops instead of clearing forests to expand farmland. It also teaches girls and young women environmental knowledge so they can lead in protecting their communities.
“Being a changemaker starts with taking that one bold step. So let's take that step today, and be the change we want to see in your communities.”
Kristy-Marc Mafue Melo
So far the group has planted 20 trees in the Nkolbisson and IRAD neighbourhoods of Yaoundé, and trained about 13 young girls in sustainable environmental practices. There is also an app. It is a prototype of the WGC Farm App, which recommends tree-crop combinations that improve soil health while maintaining farm productivity.
"I care about this because I believe no one should have to choose between feeding their family today and protecting the environment for tomorrow," she says. Healthy forests, she says, mean healthier farms, more stable harvests and more affordable food.
Her work reaches beyond WGC. She was recently selected to join UNICEF Cameroon's Adolescent Girls Advisory Board as a delegate, where she will share young people's perspectives on climate-related policies and the issues affecting girls across the country. She is an AFS Global STEM Accelerators alumna and has been selected to attend the AFS Youth Assembly in Switzerland on a full scholarship, from which she plans to bring lessons home to strengthen and expand WGC.
She wants to turn the Farm App prototype into a functional tool that farmers can actually use, and to run larger community planting campaigns with more seedlings.