What if taking a UN CC:Learn course meant opening doors for brand new opportunities? In February 2022, Axelle came across a call for applications for the Central African Women Initiative in Climate Action (WICA), which is US-funded capacity building programme for women living in Cameroon, Gabon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, and the Republic of Congo on greenhouse gas measurement, reporting and verification (MRV), mitigation, and adaptation, as well as the climate negotiation process and implementation of the Paris Agreement. She decided to apply for it and soon got a response back from the WICA programme: they asked her to complete the “Climate Change: From Learning to Action” course in a week’s time in order to get her application through. She put her hands to the task, completed the course and send them the certificate of completion. Two months later she was picked by WICA to join their regional project in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
As part of this project, Axelle took part in several trainings, both theoretical and practical, on Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU), Energy, and Climate Change Negotiations. She performed so well during the trainings that she was one of five people picked for a fully funded scholarship with the Greenhouse Gas Management Institute (GHGMI) to follow a Diploma in GHG Measurement, Reporting and Verification, which will give her the opportunity to put her newly acquired skills into practice through a three-month internship.
Axelle Vera gave an interview during an in-country workshop held as part of her internship. (Personal archive)
While undertaking all these capacity building programs, Axelle got a full-time role at an environmental consultancy bureau in Cameroon working as an Assistant Carbon Project Manager and even managed to complete the “Mastering Adaptation Plans: From Start to Finish” e-course. As she put it:
“All this started with me validating a course on UN CC:e-Learn to apply for the WICA program. So, thanks to UN CC:Learn!” – Axelle Vera Eunice Nfono Efoulou, 2022 UN CC:Learn Champion
Axelle’s story proves that by improving your knowledge on climate change, one can fulfil their dreams and progress their careers.