Women · Climate
Voice of the Oasis
From July 2025 to June 2026, "Voice of the Oasis – Women, Climate and Resilience" put the spotlight on women farmers and women-led initiatives in the Gafsa oases, while raising regional awareness of local climate issues. All 40 planned productions were delivered: 10 "Capsa Climat" shows, 10 episodes of the video podcast "The Green Voice" and 20 short videos, featuring some fifty women. Their sponsored distribution generated more than 6 million impressions.
Context
The Gafsa oases, which account for nearly 5% of Tunisia's oases, face rising temperatures, scarcer and saltier water, pollution from phosphate mining, unplanned urban sprawl and the loss of traditional farming systems. Women farmers play an essential role there, yet they remain in precarious situations, little recognised and absent from the media, even though they carry local resilience practices: water management, recycling, food processing, cooperatives. Local environmental journalism was almost non-existent in the region. The project was carried out despite a first payment that arrived two months after the start and a difficult national context for civil society.
Objectives
- 01Increase the visibility of women farmers and women-led initiatives in the Gafsa governorate.
- 02Raise public awareness of local climate and environmental issues.
- 03Strengthen the role of community media in producing solutions-journalism content.
- 04Encourage women's participation in public debate on the environment.
What we did
- 1 July 2025Project start and a stable twelve-month team: coordinator, host, field journalist, sound technician, two videographers and a community manager
- 30 July 2025Grant agreement signed with Reporters Without Borders
- 9 September 2025Purchase of all production equipment (microphones and cameras)
- July 2025 – June 2026Production of 10 sixty-minute "Capsa Climat" shows: water, desertification, reforestation, organic farming, women's initiatives, health and climate
- July 2025 – June 202610 episodes of the video podcast "The Green Voice", 8 of them built around the journey of a woman or a women's group, each highlighting one solution
- July 2025 – June 202620 short videos: solar energy, local seeds, environmental justice, women's access to land, sandstorms, pollution in El Guettar
- July 2025 – June 202680 reposts by the regional pages Gafsa Today and Gafsa, and one sponsored Meta campaign per production targeting Gafsa and neighbouring regions
- 30 June 2026Project closed after a three-month extension granted by amendment (originally due to end on 31 March 2026)
Results
Source: project closing report (Meta sponsored campaign statistics; organic distribution and the partner pages' audiences are not included).
What changed
- Local women's initiatives that had gone unnoticed gained regional visibility, and the voices of rural women are now a permanent part of the station's editorial line.
- The station now produces multi-camera video in-house, with no rentals or contractors, and its team has completed a full solutions-journalism cycle.
- The public has a regular environmental programme and an archive of 40 pieces available on capsa.tn, YouTube and TikTok.
- The distribution agreement with two regional pages can be reused for any future production.
- Short videos proved the most effective format for reach (49.3% of the total), while the video podcast was best suited to telling women's stories.
- "Capsa Climat" stays on the web radio schedule after the project, at a slower pace in the absence of new funding.
