International Rivers

These women are using their voices and leadership to help save the planet

Gender Rights

International Rivers’ 2023 IWD Week List with some of the inspirational women Environmentalists you should know and follow

Join International Rivers in celebrating #WomensHistoryMonth and #InternationalWomensDay this week.

Women play critical leadership roles in providing, managing and safeguarding water and other natural resources.

Yet too often, governments ignore women’s lives and perspectives when making decisions about water.

These women are leading the change. #WomenandRivers

Alice Pataxó: Journalist and activist passionate about changing colonial ideas of her people, the Pataxó, and bringing awareness to the murder of environmental activists through her YouTube channel Nuhé, which refers to the resilience of the Indigenous people of Brazil.
Vandana Shiva: Leading ecofeminist, Shiva is a leader in championing agricultural biodiversity and local sovereignty. She is on the cutting edge of advances in food technology and the human rights implications of such advances.
Ikal Angelei: Kenyan politician, environmentalist and Goldman Prize winner. She founded the organization, Friends of Lake Turkana and organized local people to fight the construction of the massive Gibe 3 Dam that would block access to water for indigenous communities around Lake Turkana
Joan Carling: Global Indigenous leader and UN Champion of the Earth from Cordillera, Philippines. She has been working on indigenous peoples' issues for more than 25 years. Her fields of expertise are indigenous peoples' and human rights, the environment, climate change, and sustainable development.
BertHa Zúñiga: Honduran social activist of Lenca Indigenous descent. She is the daughter of social leader Berta Cáceres, murdered in 2016 for defending her community and fighting the Agua Zarca Dam. Soon after assuming her mother's role of general coordinator of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH) in May 2017, Zúñiga Cáceres survived an attempt on her own life.
Mariluz Canaquiri: President of the Kukama Women’s Federation in the northern Amazon region of Peru. She works on the impact of foreign resource extraction on her Peruvian community and strategies used to raise Indigenous, environmental and social justice concerns about proposed projects.
Danielle Reyy Frank: Hupa tribal member and Yurok descendant. Frank has been deeply involved in the cultural and political aspects of her community from a very early age. She continues the decades-long fight led by her tribal communities to undam the Klamath River and restore the salmon.
Mari Copeny: Youth activist who first entered the public spotlight when her letter to President Obama about the water crisis in Flint prompted him to visit the city and survey the water crisis for himself. Mari Copeny has been featured in Teen Vogue, The Guardian, VICE, TIME, The Washington Post, and more for her vocal opposition to the injustices of environmental racism.
Munnira Katongole: South African and Pan-Afrikan activist fighting for social change and climate justice. She is a member of the South African Institute of International Affairs’ Youth Policy Committee on climate. Katongole fights for an equitable system, accountable solidarity from all corners, and the unity of women and girls all across the globe.
Brook Thompson: Yurok and Karuk Native Tribe member from Northern California. Growing up she lived and fished on the same land and rivers that her ancestors had for over 12,000 years. She fights for water and Native American rights through advocacy, education, science and frontline activism.
Sunita Narain: Leading expert on water harvesting, Narain is featured in Before the Flood, a climate documentary also featuring Leonardo DiCaprio. She educates and advocates about the impacts of climate change on the monsoons in India and the resulting difficulties faced by domestic farmers and food security concerns.
Alessandra Korap: Indigenous leader and Brazilian environmental activist from the Munduruku Indigenous community. Her main work is defending the demarcation of indigenous territory and denouncing the illegal exploitation and activities of the mining, logging, hydropower and other extractive industries.
WINONA LADUKE: Native American activist, economist, and author. LaDuke has devoted her life to advocating for Indigenous control of their homelands, natural resources, and cultural practices. She combines economic and environmental approaches in her efforts to create a thriving and sustainable community for her own White Earth reservation and Indigenous populations across the country.
PIANPORN (PAI) DEETES: nternational Rivers' Southeast Asia Regional Campaigns and Communications Director. Pai leads work on Southeast Asia's major rivers, focusing on the Mekong and Salween Rivers by advocating for better financier and government policies and the rights of local communities