2025 Spring Impact Report
At Planet Women’s 100 Women Pathway workshop in November, Dr. Tiara Moore, Founder and CEO of Black in Marine Science, echoed the words of poet Toi Derricotte: “Joy is a form of resistance.” Indeed, during moments of collective devastation and chaos, joy may be the last thing on our minds—but at Planet Women, we believe that cultivating joy allows us to reconnect with our humanity and spark the energy to create change.
What’s bringing us joy and energy? In January, Planet Women welcomed a new CEO, Emma Robbins, kicking off an exciting new chapter in our journey to partner with women to create a healthy planet for the benefit of all life.
And despite the rollercoaster of 2025, our community has repeatedly come together to offer mutual support and empathy. We’ve seen it in our Fundraising 101 workshops, our 100 Women Pathway gatherings, our CGEE community and our Women’s CEO Network. And we’ve seen it with our generous donors and Ripple members.
Without you, our vision of a brighter future would not be possible. Thank you for your partnership in advancing a better world—for women, for the Earth, and for us all. We hope you enjoy the highlights below of what our community has accomplished together this year.
Planet Women Strategy
TRANSFORM THE CULTURE OF CONSERVATION
Planet Women offers two initiatives that empower everyone to be an environmental leader:
100 Women Pathway
and
Center for Gender, Equity & the Environment
CENTER FOR GENDER, EQUITY, AND THE ENVIRONMENT
OBJECTIVE: Increase gender equity in the environmental sector by offering resources and technical support to grassroots groups.
IMPACT: Since 2023, more than 200 gender champions from 23 African countries have been resourced through our two CGEE projects: the Women’s Leadership Circle and Gender Mainstreaming. Over the last six months:
24 participants graduated from the Women’s Leadership Circle and each received $3K seed grants for her personal and professional development; and,
85 women and men learned how to create Gender Action Plans for conservation projects via our Gender Mainstreaming curriculum. Learn more.
100 WOMEN PATHWAY
OBJECTIVE: Rapidly advance diverse women into senior leadership roles in the U.S. conservation and environmental sectors.
IMPACT: In April, Cohort 4 of the Pathway graduated with 18 women from across the Southeastern U.S. We’re very proud to report that 64 women have now joined the 100 Women Pathway—70% of whom identify as women of color. As of June 2025, 14 women (22%) have advanced to higher level roles, including nine women of color.
FUNDRAISING TRAININGS
OBJECTIVE: Advance nonprofit partners’ missions by teaching fundraising information and skills in an accessible way.
IMPACT: Planet Women Co-Founder Kristine Zeigler has delivered trainings to more than 250 people in 2025.
Attendees reported that these workshops have helped them to respond to their organizations’ loss of funding and learn new skills in identifying donors, communicating about their organization, scripting an ask and thanking supporters.
Testimonials
Planet Women Strategy
PROTECT NATURE AND SUPPORT COMMUNITIES
Planet Women creates healthier forests, rivers and biodiversity by funding projects that are co-created and led by women in the Amazon, Congo and Colorado River Basins.
WOMEN AND WATER CONVENING
OBJECTIVE: Bring together Indigenous women and allies who are stewarding and protecting the Colorado River to address water issues and community-driven approaches.
IMPACT: Women leaders in the water sector in the Colorado River Basin said they had no spaces dedicated to networking with other Indigenous women and allies, so in 2023 we co-created one.
In November 2024, we co-hosted the second annual Women and Water Convening at the San Xavier District of the Tohono O’odham Nation in Arizona with Indigenous Women’s Leadership Network, Sonoran Institute, The Chapter House and The Nature Conservancy. Fifty-six Indigenous women and allies, representing 10 Tribes, spent two days building connections, exchanging knowledge, and charting a path forward to steward and heal the Colorado River for generations to come.
GRANT SPOTLIGHT:
INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP NETWORK
Mission: IWLN connects and supports Native women working on water, natural resources, and environmental issues in the Colorado River Basin. It seeks to engage past, present, and future Native women leaders – to learn from each other, mentor one another, and support each other.
PARTNERSHIP: Planet Women had the privilege of seed funding the IWLN in 2021 and has continued to support the organization, most recently providing a $45K grant. This funding supports a variety of IWLN initiatives including educational webinars and opportunities for knowledge sharing between multi-generational Indigenous women at gatherings, conferences and a rafting trip.
Additionally, five travel scholarships were awarded to young professionals from four different Basin Tribes to attend the 2024 Colorado River Water Users Association conference, an important annual conference of water policymakers, providers, users and conservationists in the Basin.
GRANT SPOTLIGHT:
RED DE MUJERES EN CONSERVACIÓN DE LATINOAMÉRICA Y EL CARIBE
MISSION: Bring together women and male allies in a collaborative space to strategize how to elevate women’s leadership in this field—and to achieve conservation goals in a more equitable, inclusive and human-centered way.
PARTNERSHIP: Planet Women is excited for this new grant partnership with the MeC LAC Network, comprised of Latin American leaders, advocates, students, professionals, scientists and academics who are protecting biodiversity at local, regional and global levels.
Thanks to your support, Planet Women granted $15K to the Network in fall 2024 enabling them to participate in the 2024 United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP16) in Colombia. Their delegation of 10 women implemented the MeC LAC COP16 Network Agenda, which comprised 20 events and positioned the Network as a relevant player in the global gender and biodiversity agenda.
