From Leadership Program to National TV: How Eco-Kid Is Giving Madagascar's Children an Environmental Voice
Interviewed by Valentina Marcos, Branding & Diversity Associate at Emzingo
Interviewee: Précieuse Randriamanantsoa
What happens after a leadership development program ends? For Précieuse Randriamanantsara, a participant in Emzingo's Changemakers Program (CMP) in 2025, the answer is: a legally registered environmental association, a national media partnership, and a children's radio and TV show called "Echo-kids: The Voice of Children for Environmental Protection" reaching communities across Madagascar.
Why Précieuse Joined Emzingo's Changemakers Program
“I chose to apply to CMP because the very name of the program, "Changemaker," resonated deeply with my core beliefs. At the time, I was nurturing a project- called Eco-Kid that was incredibly close to my heart. Unfortunately, I lacked the “instruction manual” to bring it to life. Balancing being mother, student, professional, and wife was a daily juggling act and a burden. Therefore, the Changemakers Program emerged as a true compass to guide me in the right direction, and structure the vision for Eco-Kid. It was a partially remote opportunity that allowed me to develop my personal project alongside my other responsibilities”
Leadership Skills That Made the Difference
The most rewarding sessions of the program all centered around soft skills. Firstly, ‘The Bootcamp’ with Youth First in Maroantsetra & the ‘CMP Campground’ sessions both helped me realize that successful partnerships change everything. We cannot always overcome every obstacle on our own, and therefore, must find strength in unity. This means that in order to maximize impact, a project fundamentally relies on having happy and satisfied stakeholders. Which means that you must know how to support others and their own projects in a spirit of reciprocity in order to build an effective and long-lasting partnership. This concept is also known as the ‘emotional bank account’ and in sum it says that you must prioritize the human element over titles when working with others.
Additionally, the ‘Personal Purpose and Social Impact’ workshop taught me how resilience is nurtured when a project leader aligns purpose with action. Purpose works as an internal compass that provides both direction and motivation to any endeavor. Therefore, in order for a project to be successful, you need its vision to connect with your mission. This relates to ‘Leading with Courage and Vulnerability’, another one of the most noteworthy sessions from the program. This session allowed me to build resilience through my vulnerabilities. It taught me that true leadership is about prioritizing empathy and the mental health of oneself and others.
In connection with mental health, the session ‘Inner-Work" & Emotional Intelligence’ also taught me that internal wounds often block our potential and keep us from advancing towards our goals. I also realized that the people who have inadvertently hurt us sometimes act based on past experiences. Which means that had we been in their shoes, we might have acted the exact same way. Combined with emotional intelligence, this mindset showed me that a leader must know how to wear different "hats" and choose the right one at the right time. Those “hats” can often lead to engaging in difficult conversations with others. Notably, the ‘Courageous Conversations’, gave me the skills to break the ice in situations that would have previously terrified me. ‘CMP on Stage’, an individual showcasing session, allowed me to put those communication skills to the test by showcasing my experiences with the other participants.
Last but not least, ‘Fundraising and Financing Options’ helped me identify that even when traditional funding doesn't come right away, you can always start looking for financing at a smaller scale. Mobilizing material donations or rallying volunteers who share the same values can spark a big movement. As the saying goes, "little by little, the bird builds its nest," and that is exactly where Eco-kid stands today.
How the Changemakers Program Accelerated Eco-Kid
CMP served as an accelerator for my personal project on every level. Prior to CMP, Eco-kid was an informal grassroots initiative, and I was unsure about whether to launch it as a social enterprise or a non-profit association. Fortunately, the CMP leadership development program pushed me to move forward step-by-step with what I had, and helped me realize it was best to launch Eco-Kid as an association. In November of 2025, after returning from the CMP graduation ceremony held in Peru for that year's edition, Eco-kid became a legally registered association in Madagascar.
Eco-Kid's Next Steps: Expanding Across Madagascar
Today, Eco-kid has a sustainable growth model that combines fundraising initiatives with strategic partnerships to ensure expansion across all regions of Madagascar in the next few years. The association has 11 active members, including environmentalists, educators, child development specialists, and activist mothers. Recently, Eco-Kid was publicly recognized by Madagascar's Directorate of Youth and International Outreach as an example of youth success. The project continues to gain wonderful momentum, including a recently secured partnership with Oasis TV/Radio. This partnership will cover the production, studio, broadcasting, and technical costs of a new children's environmental show called "Echo-kids: The Voice of Children for Environmental Protection." The show will feature children live on air discussing environmental topics and promoting environmental stewardship. In the long-term, I would like to return to Maroantsetra, where the Changemakers bootcamp took place, in order to film special episodes for the show and continue to help Malagasy children discover their country's biodiversity firsthand.
While this journey has been very demanding, especially since I cannot yet offer financial compensation to my volunteers, our strength lies in our shared values of love for children, their education, and the future of our planet. My greatest joy is seeing this association made up of young volunteers from all walks of life. Among them, young mothers who choose to commit their time to making a difference. The Changemakers Program is intimately linked to each of these victories, step by step.
This interview was originally conducted in French.
About the author
Valentina Marcos
Branding & Diversity Associate | Emzingo
Valentina is an International Relations graduate whose work focuses on diversity, organizational culture, and people-centered leadership. She holds certifications in Project Management (UNSSC), Humanitarian Logistics (MIT edX), and Social Sciences (Sciences Po), and has lived and worked across Mexico, Canada, Spain, and France.
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