Famous Women Environmentalists We Should Know About
"You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide is what kind of difference you want to make.”
Dr. Jane Goodall
As part of Seeds of Change Women’s Day Celebrations, we are spotlighting 15 female environmental change-makers from around the world who have dedicated their lives to environmental protection. These women work across various fields and disciplines all fighting for one cause: a better planet for us all.
Let us celebrate these women, past, and present, be inspired by their tireless fight for a greener future and thank them for their enduring effort in the face of much adversity.
1. Berta Isabel Cáceres Flores (1971 - 2016)
As a member of the Lenca people of Honduras, she knew the importance of preserving the natural world around her. She led many grassroots campaigns against illegal logging and ensured that small communities could gain access to water, food, and medicine.
Tragically, in 2016, Cáceres was assassinated in her home, she said, “I want to live, there are many things I still want to do in this world but I have never once considered giving up fighting for our territory, for a life with dignity, because our fight is legitimate.”
2. Chai Jing (1976-)
Chai Jing is a Chinese journalist, former TV host, author and environmental activist. She rose to fame with her self-financed documentary Under the Dome, an independent investigation that takes a deep look into China’s environmental problems. The film sparked widespread discussion about pollution and environmental policy in China and was subsequently blocked on Chinese websites.
In 2015 she was also named one of Time Magazine's 100 most influential people.
3. Dolores Al Shelleh (1991-)
Dolores Al Shelleh is Jordanian-Serbian mountaineer and activist who in 2019 became the first Jordanian woman and third Arab woman to achieve the feat.
She also works as an advocate with The Sustainable City to raise awareness regarding the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
4. Frances Beinecke (1949-)
Frances Beinecke is an environmental activist and politician from the US. She served as the former president of the Natural Resources Defense Council from 2006 to 2015. She attended Yale University as one of the first graduating classes to include women.
In 2010, she was appointed by President Barack Obama to the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling.
5. Greta Thunberg (2003-)
6. Isatou Ceesay (1972-)
Like many girls in Gambia of her generation, Isatou Ceesay was forced to drop out of school at a young age. She noticed the colorful plastic bags that she used to admire were now gathering as trash all over her village and she was determined to find a solution.
In 1997, Ceesay founded the Njau Recycling and Income Generation Group. Women collect the recyclable materials and upcycle them into bags, mats, purses, and much more. Learn more about her program from OnePlasticBag.com.
7. Dr. Jane Goodall (1934-)
Considered to be the worlds leading expert on chimpanzees, Dr Goodall is best known for her 60-year study of the behavior and social interactions of wild chimpanzees in Gombe Stream National Park, Tanzania.
She is the founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and the Roots & Shoots program, and she continues to work vigorously on environmental education, conservation, and sustainability. In April 2002, she was named a UN Messenger of Peace.
8. Marina Silva (1958-)
Marina Silva is a warrior for the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil. She is currently the spokeswoman for the Sustainability Party (REDE). She led demonstrations in the 1980s to protect the rainforest from government control.
Silva became a politician and continued fighting for environmental protection, sustainable development, and social justice. Deforestation decreased by 59% from 2004 to 2007, during her political career.
9. Naomi Klein (1970-)
Naomi A. Klein is a Canadian author, social activist, and filmmaker known for her political analyses and criticisms of capitalism, globalization, and climate change.
Her 2014 book, ‘This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate’ was a New York Times non-fiction bestseller. In 2016 Klein was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize for her activism on climate justice.
10. Rachel Carson (1907-1964)
Rachel Carson is an American biologist and conservationist. During the 1950s Carson conducted research into the effects of pesticides on the food chain and wildlife. Her findings were published in her notable book, Silent Spring. The book helped to raise environmental consciousness and led to the banning of the toxic pesticide, DDT.
Thanks to her, Earth Day also began to be celebrated and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was created.
11. Sheila Watt-Cloutier (1953-)
Watt-Cloutier is a Canadian Inuit activist. She has been a political representative for Inuit of the Arctic at the regional, national, and international levels. Watt-Cloutier has worked on a range of environmental and social issues affecting Inuit people and their livelihood, most notably global warming.
She is also the author of the memoir, The Right to Be Cold: One Woman’s Story of Protecting Her Culture, the Arctic, and the Whole Planet.
12. Sylvia A. Earle (1935-)
Sylvia A. Earle is an American oceanographer, explorer, author, and lecturer.
In the early 1990s Earle became the first female chief scientist of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and was named by Time Magazine as its first Hero for the Planet in 1998.
She is a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, sometimes called “Her Deepness” or “The Sturgeon General.” Earle is the author of more than 125 publications concerning marine science and technology including Sea Change: A Message of the Oceans.
13. Dr. Vandana Shiva (1952-)
Dr. Shiva is an Indian physicist and one of the greatest champions of ecofeminism today. In 1982 she founded the Research Foundation for Science, Technology, and Natural Resource Policy (RFSTN), an organization devoted to developing sustainable methods of agriculture.
She is also one of the founders of the Women's Environment & Development Organization (WEDO).
14. Vanessa Nakate (1996-)
Vanessa Nakate is known for her protests outside of the Ugandan Parliament to draw attention to the rising temperatures. Nakate founded the Youth for Future Africa and the Africa-based Rise Up Movement.
She attended the 2020 World Economic Forum in Davos along with other environmental youth activists. After being cropped out of a photo with other activists, Nakate spoke out – bringing attention to the importance of amplifying voices from the global south and African continent in climate activism.
15. Dr. Wangari Maathai (1940-2011)
Dr. Maathai was a Kenyan social, environmental, and political activist and the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. She was the first woman in East and Central Africa to become a Doctor of Philosophy, receiving her Ph.D. from the University of Nairobi in Kenya.
She founded the Green Belt Movement, which aimed to combat deforestation, desertification, hunger, and the water crisis.
These amazing women come from all walks of life. There are many differences between them, but what connects all of them is they all believe in their cause and their message comes from compassion for the earth and her people. Never underestimate the power you have to create change within your community for the better. Be fearless, be passionate, be compassionate.
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