Full Name
Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim
Job Title
President AFPAT/UNSG SDG Advocate
Company
Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad
Speaker Bio
Indigenous woman, environmental activist and member of Chad’s pastoralist Mbororo People, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim began advocating for Indigenous Peoples’ rights and environmental protection at age 12, founding the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad (AFPAT) to combat discrimination against indigenous peoples and advocate for their rights and the preservation of nature.
In the Sahel region, where communities face immense pressure from climate change—including heatwaves, droughts, desertification, and devastating floods, She has pioneered initiatives to support Indigenous communities. She has introduced alternative income-generating activities for Mbororo women and innovative collaborative tools, such as 2D and 3D participatory mapping to protect land rights, promote sustainable ecosystem management, and reduce conflicts over natural resources. Her work strengthens climate solutions through mitigation, adaptation, and resilience strategies. Driven by a powerful vision, she advocates for the recognition and integration of Indigenous Peoples’ traditional knowledge, technologies, and science to enhance climate resilience, safeguard biodiversity, and restore ecosystems, especially within Indigenous communities.
To bridge the gap between local realities and global policy, she began engaging in international negotiations on climate, land, and biodiversity over two decades ago. Her mission has been to amplify the voices of Indigenous Peoples, especially from Africa, who are on the frontlines of climate change. She advocates for increased investment in small-scale, community-led projects spearheaded by Indigenous women initiatives that foster meaningful impact, empower women, and drive local innovation in nature protection, yet are often overlooked by traditional international financing. Through her organization, she leads efforts that promote sustainable, community-based development by harnessing the deep-rooted wisdom of Indigenous knowledge systems.
She is a member of key African Indigenous Peoples Organizations, including the Indigenous Peoples of Africa Coordinating Committee (IPACC) and the Réseau des Populations Autochtones et Locales pour la Gestion des Ecosystèmes Forestiers d'Afrique Centrale (REPALEAC) of which she is a founder member.
At the international level, she is dedicated to the protection of all Indigenous Peoples, from the Congo to the Arctic, Himalaya to the Pacific, to promote their wisdom and further value their knowledge in the fight against climate change. She served as co-chair of the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change at the historic UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris, and for COP22-23-24 - 27 and COP28 in UAE. She was an advisor to the COP26, COP28 and COP29 Presidents.
She advances environmental protection for Indigenous Peoples by participating in international policy dialogues held around the three Rio Conventions; Climate Change (UNFCCC), Biodiversity (CBD), and Desertification (UNCCD) pressuring governments to recognize land rights of Indigenous peoples and advance their solutions for climate adaptation and mitigation. Hindou’s engagement with international environmental agendas led her to serve as co-chair of the Facilitative Working Group of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform (LCIPP) of the UNFCCC that she led the negotiation of the operationalization at the COP22 and COP23.
Hindou is appointed as SDG Advocate by the UN Secretary-General to share her local experiences with global leaders to climate action.
Her work has been recognized by various actors , she has been recipient of the following grants: The Diane Von Furstenberg DVF, the Rolex enterprise award 2021; the Pritzker Emerging Environmental Genius Award; that she used the prizes to develop participatory mapping in Chad where she already mapped 3 millions of hectares. She was recognized by BBC in the list of Top 100 women leader, and by TIME's Women Leaders in Climate Change. Recognized by African media Akoya Africa 100 women leader, Awarded the O.B.E. (Officer of the Order of the British Empire), Named – Forbes African environmental activists to watch in 2026, . Time Earth Awards 2026 .
Her speech during One Forest Summit and her TED talk on Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge meets science to solve climate change has surpassed more than 1 million views.
SOCIAL MEDIA - HINDOU’S HANDLES:
• X : @hindououmar
• Facebook : Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim
• Linkedin + Instagram : hindououmar
WEB SITE
• https://afpat.net/
In the Sahel region, where communities face immense pressure from climate change—including heatwaves, droughts, desertification, and devastating floods, She has pioneered initiatives to support Indigenous communities. She has introduced alternative income-generating activities for Mbororo women and innovative collaborative tools, such as 2D and 3D participatory mapping to protect land rights, promote sustainable ecosystem management, and reduce conflicts over natural resources. Her work strengthens climate solutions through mitigation, adaptation, and resilience strategies. Driven by a powerful vision, she advocates for the recognition and integration of Indigenous Peoples’ traditional knowledge, technologies, and science to enhance climate resilience, safeguard biodiversity, and restore ecosystems, especially within Indigenous communities.
To bridge the gap between local realities and global policy, she began engaging in international negotiations on climate, land, and biodiversity over two decades ago. Her mission has been to amplify the voices of Indigenous Peoples, especially from Africa, who are on the frontlines of climate change. She advocates for increased investment in small-scale, community-led projects spearheaded by Indigenous women initiatives that foster meaningful impact, empower women, and drive local innovation in nature protection, yet are often overlooked by traditional international financing. Through her organization, she leads efforts that promote sustainable, community-based development by harnessing the deep-rooted wisdom of Indigenous knowledge systems.
She is a member of key African Indigenous Peoples Organizations, including the Indigenous Peoples of Africa Coordinating Committee (IPACC) and the Réseau des Populations Autochtones et Locales pour la Gestion des Ecosystèmes Forestiers d'Afrique Centrale (REPALEAC) of which she is a founder member.
At the international level, she is dedicated to the protection of all Indigenous Peoples, from the Congo to the Arctic, Himalaya to the Pacific, to promote their wisdom and further value their knowledge in the fight against climate change. She served as co-chair of the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change at the historic UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris, and for COP22-23-24 - 27 and COP28 in UAE. She was an advisor to the COP26, COP28 and COP29 Presidents.
She advances environmental protection for Indigenous Peoples by participating in international policy dialogues held around the three Rio Conventions; Climate Change (UNFCCC), Biodiversity (CBD), and Desertification (UNCCD) pressuring governments to recognize land rights of Indigenous peoples and advance their solutions for climate adaptation and mitigation. Hindou’s engagement with international environmental agendas led her to serve as co-chair of the Facilitative Working Group of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform (LCIPP) of the UNFCCC that she led the negotiation of the operationalization at the COP22 and COP23.
Hindou is appointed as SDG Advocate by the UN Secretary-General to share her local experiences with global leaders to climate action.
Her work has been recognized by various actors , she has been recipient of the following grants: The Diane Von Furstenberg DVF, the Rolex enterprise award 2021; the Pritzker Emerging Environmental Genius Award; that she used the prizes to develop participatory mapping in Chad where she already mapped 3 millions of hectares. She was recognized by BBC in the list of Top 100 women leader, and by TIME's Women Leaders in Climate Change. Recognized by African media Akoya Africa 100 women leader, Awarded the O.B.E. (Officer of the Order of the British Empire), Named – Forbes African environmental activists to watch in 2026, . Time Earth Awards 2026 .
Her speech during One Forest Summit and her TED talk on Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge meets science to solve climate change has surpassed more than 1 million views.
SOCIAL MEDIA - HINDOU’S HANDLES:
• X : @hindououmar
• Facebook : Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim
• Linkedin + Instagram : hindououmar
WEB SITE
• https://afpat.net/
Speaking At
