My name is Nomba GANAME. I am of the ‘KOROMA’ ethnic group – a word which means ‘unifier’ in French – and I come from Yoro, in the Dinangourou district of the Koro circle, Bandiagara region, Republic of Mali. My home village, Yoro, is situated on the Mali–Burkina Faso border

I am a sociologist who studied in Mali and France. Today, I have 40 years’ diverse experience in the fields of natural resource management, rural land tenure and decentralization.

I come from a very humble family belonging to the founding clan of the village of Yoro; my childhood was divided between tending domestic animals, being sent by my father to gather leaves and roots from medicinal trees, and attending school.

Since 1986, I have worked in various fields: pastoralism, rural land tenure, decentralisation and natural resource management. During this time, I have organised and facilitated the creation of local structures (village and inter-village associations) to enable them to take charge of their own development within the framework of Malian legislation on decentralisation. I have also worked on forest management and the management of pastoral areas to minimise conflicts between farmers and herders and enable them to coexist peacefully whilst ensuring the reproduction of the resources essential to their survival.

From 2010 to the present day, I have been the representative of the WILD Foundation in Mali, where I hold the post of field operations manager for the ‘Mali Elephant Landscapes’ programme. My work involves establishing locally-led environmental governance systems based on traditional structures, which preserve habitat for elephants and other wildlife whilst improving local livelihoods, creating jobs for young people and opportunities for women, and fostering social cohesion.

I am passionate about the Gourma region of Mali, elephants and diverse cultures, as well as the importance of an inclusive local engagement process and how this can be fostered and strengthened through interlinked actions at national, regional and community levels.

I have received several awards for my work, including The Tusk Prince William Award for Lifetime Achievement in Conservation, and have been nominated for the Medal of Honor for Water and Forests in Mali.