CIPLCOs is currently represented by a team with over 80 years of collective experience working with indigenous peoples across Liberia and having completed multiple projects with different international organizations.
CIPLCOs’ collective experience spans areas including VSLA, livelihood and agriculture sustainability, aquaculture and permaculture, research work, education on community land rights, raising awareness actions to forest-dependent indigenous peoples on Redd+, reporting and monitoring illegal trade and trafficking on endangered species. Many of the CIPLCOs team members have represented indigenous women and girls’ legal rights against force marriage, FGM, and other harmful traditional practices.
Gbeintor Bleh
Chairperson
Ms. Bleh’s educational background is in management and accounting, with additional credentials in Global Leadership for Women. Ms. Bleh has over 15 years of experience working on major projects coordinating training, advocacy, and empowerment in areas of food security, women and youth, land rights, and climate change. Ms. Bleh is the founder and CEO of Community Sustainability Development Organization (COSDO).
“I decided to join this noble consultum because we are all women of like minds. We have lots of things in common. We share the same goal.”
Evelyn Barry
Co-Chairperson
Atty. Evelyn F. Barry is a women rights advocate with a background as a professional lawyer. Ms. Barry is the founder and executive director of Carefound Liberia, educating women and girls on land rights and legal protections. Ms. Barry has over 10 years’ experience in conflict and post-conflict settings, working with multiple international agencies in fields including advocacy, education, gender rights, legal environment, and program development.
“My motivation to work with CIPLCOs is to advocate for agroforestry rights for women and girls in Liberia while educating them on the effects of climate change.”
Aretha Togbah
National Coordinator
Ms. Togbah’s educational background is in Accounting and Management, with additional certifications in project management and land governance. Ms. Togbah has over seven years of experience in advocacy for women in areas including land rights, leadership, security, economic empowerment, and emission reduction for forest-dependent women. Many of Ms. Togbah’s works have involved collaborations with major international groups.
“To raise the voices of indigenous people and ensure their rights are secured”
Laura Bee Kiekpo
Treasurer
Ms. Kiekpo’s educational background is in public administration and management, with additional credentials in women’s health, business, and community works. Ms. Kiekpo’s experience has focused on training and awareness building for women in rural areas, girls human rights, and sexual reproductive health and rights.
“WEFL believes that indigenous peoples have the right to social benefits and that it is our responsibility to acknowledge these rights. To forget about the involvement of indigenous peoples is to create setbacks and loss of development.”
Helen Ketter Taylor
Member
Ms. Taylor’s educational background is in sociology and public administration. Ms. Taylor has experience in the fields of gender based violence, human rights advocacy and training, psychosocial counseling, and land rights advocacy. Helen is the executive director for W.E.D.
“I am motivated to work with CIPLCOs so that together we can open the world’s eyes to the rights of the indigenous peoples of Liberia. These peoples cannot provide these rights for themselves but need the support of CIPLCOs.”
Lawrence A.K.T. Bondo
Ex Officio Board Advisor
Mr. Bondo’s educational background is in sociology and economics, with additional credentials in advocacy, counseling, communication, and education. Mr. Bondo has spent over 25 years working with international organizations conducting research and offering support for indigenous peoples and other under-represented peoples across Liberia and is currently representing the affiliated organization Community Development Initiative Inc. (CDI).
“I am increasingly driven by the World Bank motivation, and demonstration for the establishment of a network that involves indigenous peoples and local community organizations in Liberia. I am so passionate about the formation because it demonstrates our willingness to amplify the voice of the voiceless and bring light into darkness for our deprived and marginalized women, children, girls, and peoples living with disabilities.”
Nicholas Modlin
European Representative
Mr. Modlin’s educational background is in business administration, entrepreneurship, and mathematics education, with additional credentials in sustainable food systems. Mr. Modlin has experience coordinating the startup of multiple organizations and excels in the areas of communications and coaching.
“I believe in a future where the small communities that support the rest of the world are accounted for at the same level as the rest. I believe in CIPLCOs because it offers an opportunity for these communities to strengthen themselves and earn the protection and credit that they have deserved from the beginning.”
Consortium of Indigenous Peoples and Local Community Organizations 