By Henry Uche
Lady Cheta Nwabuike is woman of many parts. She is a corporate leader, sustainability practitioner and environmental enthusiast. Her professional experience cuts across various industries within which she has worked, and these include the communication, manufacturing, oil, gas and power industries. She currently works with the Clean Energy Group in Nigeria.
She serves as the Group Executive Director overseeing the Legal, Compliance, Health & Safety, Environmental, Social & Governance (E.S.G.), Human Resource & Admin arms of the business. In this interview with Daily Sun, Lady Cheta Nwabuike talks about climate change, how women can drive sustainability initiatives as well as tips for young entrepreneurs looking to make a difference in the field of sustainability in Nigeria.
What do you consider the most pressing climate challenges facing Nigeria today?
I believe the most pressing climate challenges facing Nigeria today are extreme weather conditions and the consequences that come with them. The rains, for instance are here accompanied by heavy floods, and flooding is one of the major causes of displacement for people. The other issues are the changes that now occur within the seasons. If you notice, last year, we had less rain, and due to this, we had issues with food security and drought. Another critical issue is desertification where most of our land in the North is gradually turning into desert. These are the key challenges that are facing us. If you go down to the South-east and South- south, you will see the devastation from climate change. Most of that region is under threat from erosion and the South-east is literally being eaten up by erosion. So, these are some of the major environmental challenges happening in Nigeria.
How can local communities contribute to mitigate the effect of climate change?
When you talk about local communities and climate change, the first thing that comes to mind is the issue of deforestation. This is basically because of how much people in the rural areas depend on wood for cooking and building. When the average person in local community wants to cook, the first thing is go into the forest and cut down trees. Another issue is that of bush burning which causes a lot of problem. It destroys the soil and increases the emission of greenhouse gases.
So in mitigating these issues, local communities need to tone down on deforestation and bush burning. If this is done, it will considerably help in addressing issues around climate change. Another mitigating factor is the use of alternatives resources. The use of renewable energy sources like solar energy is gradually creeping into local communities and if we continue to push for the adoption of renewable energy as an alternative means, that would really be helpful. Also in terms of waste management, the way waste is managed is vital too. Whether it is factory or home waste and any other type of waste, we can channel it into something else. We should learn to minimize our waste. It’s not everything that should be thrown. Unfortunately, in this clime because we don’t have a culture of looking inwards to know how to manage waste, we think that everything should be thrown away. We can reuse, recycle reduce and recover our wastes. There are many things that we can channel our waste into, instead of dumping them into the riverside and blocking various channels or drainages, creating bigger issues for us. What role do women play in driving sustainability initiatives in Nigeria? In driving sustainability, there is a lot that women can do. You know that when we talk about sustainability, sustainability basically has four arms. One arm is the environment.
Who are the ones that majorly take care of the environment? It is the women?
We play a key role in managing the environment, whether it’s sweeping to tending the flowers, gardens, and the trees. Then, when it comes to the social part of sustainability, we are the home managers. We take care of the spouses, children, parents, siblings, and even members of our extended families. As such sustainability is already comes as an inbuilt thing for us. We even go as far as stretching out to other stakeholders who we meet in terms of providing care, collaboration, love, or whatever it is. So naturally women are more caring and tend to invest in, and educate people that are around them more. Women are the ones who would mostly sit at home to mold the children and ensure that they behave well. You know the saying that “when the child is good, he/she is the father’s child, but when the child is bad, he/she is the mother’s child”. So women do a lot of character building and molding because we don’t want to be given bad names. We don’t want to raise undisciplined children. We strive to ensure that we give them the best upbringing. So, issues like governance and compliance are already inbuilt in us and we naturally transcend these to people around us.
What are some sustainable practices you believe should be prioritized in urban and rural areas in Nigeria?
I would say the first one is waste management, this will greatly help in reducing the flooding we are experiencing today.
Flooding has seriously increased due to wastes that are dumped into our drainages which eventually end up blocking the drains. As you go down the entire stretch of the road, you find out that the drainages are blocked with waste disposal. So, first, we must learn how to manage waste. Does the woman roasting corn by the wayside in the village know about waste management? She may, but not to the extent that we would want her to know. That is why when we talk on how we can help them in the village on waste management, the first thing is to begin with education. You cannot just be in the city and talk about sustainability; you have to take the message back home to teach the people at the grass root level. Because you see with that corn comb, there is so much it can do even after the corn has been roasted. There is so much innovation going on now with the use of waste products and we must learn from that to minimize waste. Ahead of the 2025 World Environment Day, how important do you see tree planting initiatives in combating climate change? It is important in the sense that when we were growing up, for some of us who grew up around trees, when you talk of shelter, you just go under the tree. You can sleep there or eat there or read there. You can do a lot. There is so much fun just sitting and enjoying the cool breeze under the tree but nobody is thinking about all that because the world has become so globalized. When I was younger, and when we traveled to the village, we enjoyed the cool breeze because of all the trees planted everywhere. I could never imagine that we would be feeling this hot at some point in our lives but these days we are now talking about heat waves. We need air condition to feel a lot better. We need to use fans in the house because all the trees have been cut down. Buildings have taken over every available space. The consequences of it all, is unbearable heat. In many places now they would rather pull down the trees there and build statues. By doing that, we lose the value of what the trees provide us with in terms of esthetics and the value we create from nature.
Can you tell us about the tree planting projects your organization has worked on and their impact on local communities?
Our core business is running power plants, so in our various power plants, we try to create green zones which also helps to reduce the very minimal emissions from CNG. Our generators rarely emit anything, but if there is anything, the greenery would absorb it. Last year, interestingly, we partnered with an NGO, One Million Tree Initiative. It was a beautiful outing for our organization. We planted trees at Omole Estate, phase 1, Ikeja Lagos. It was a fantastic experience for us. Up till today, the entire Board and staff still feel good about it. Again, this year, we are planting more trees. And then employees are even looking at naming the trees after their children and their grandchildren because when you talk of sustainability, you talk about the future. The future is our children and our grandchildren. So, that is what we are looking forward to and it would be sustained by the grace of God.
How can companies integrate sustainable practices, such as tree planting, into their CSR strategies effectively?
One is education, awareness and partnership. You need to partner with NGOs out there that are doing this. It becomes very easy. All you need do just partner with them, you will find that it’s actually subsidized for you because instead of spending maybe millions of naira doing it on your own, if you come together with the NGO that already has other partners, it becomes cost effective and then you are able to do much greater than what you would have done alone. In adopting these initiatives, you are also teaching your employees the importance of sustainability, the importance of tree planting.
You might think that it’s not going anywhere, but I bet you, it does. It opens up a lot of things for you, and they take these things home, and then it becomes something personal for them that they actually do in their own homes. It certainly has good ripple effects.
How do you think Nigeria can leverage World Environment Day to raise awareness about environmental issues?
Nigeria can leverage World Environment Day by launching nationwide awareness campaigns across media platforms to highlight local environmental challenges. Engaging schools and communities in eco-activities like clean-ups and tree planting can foster grassroots participation. Partnerships between government, private sector, and NGOs can promote sustainable practices and showcase green innovations. There should be campaigns from the government, starting from Federal Ministry of Environment, down to State Ministries of Environment. Rather than solely reactive measures, the focus should be on proactive education. By educating citizens on their responsibilities and the benefits of environmental stewardship, compliance can be fostered more effectively. We know Nigerians can sometimes be obstinate, but in truth everyone wants to enjoy the benefit of good governance. So, when the message dispersed in the right way and people understand the benefits they would ideally want to do the right thing. Also monitoring teams should ensure compliance and intervene with educational efforts before resorting to punitive measures. Punishments should be applied judiciously, avoiding arbitrary actions that undermine credibility.
What advice would you give to young entrepreneurs looking to make a difference in the field of sustainability?
Start very small. First of all, understand what the 17 SDGs are. That is a good place to start. Look at what your business is doing, and then key into the SDG that relates to your business. So if you are into consumables, what SDG will relate to responsible consumption, you look at that, tailor it, and then set small, small goals for yourself. Don’t go for the big things. I always say. Set small goals for yourself. Once you achieve that goal, move on to the next one. You achieve that move on to the next one. Before you know it, in your small space, you are making a name. We have some entrepreneurs that their business is just to collect waste and they turn it into something nice. So there are many things that you can do in just your small space. But remain consistent in whatever you are doing. Don’t start today and then say you are tired tomorrow. Just remain consistent. With that, you will grow and make your impact in the world.