MELCA works in three program areas:

1. SEGNI (Social Empowerment through Group and Nature Interaction)

SEGNI is an innovative approach to experiential learning about environment and culture. The SEGNI program takes youth into the wilderness, "on trail", to experience nature, learn about traditional knowledge of biodiversity and conservation, and foster leadership. The wilderness trails provided by the program involve five-night wilderness treks in national parks and forests under the tutelage of elders. SEGNI programme is conducted in Bale Mountains National Park and Menagesha Suba State forest (Both in Oromia region) and in Sheka zone (Southern nations, nationalities and peoples regional state).

2. Advocacy at Sheka Forest

The results of a baseline study conducted by MELCA in 2005 on the situation and threats to Sheka Forest provide a framework for MELCA’s work to save the forest and bring about policy change on issues concerning environmental and community rights, and a focused and coordinated advocacy. Thus, five research works which focused Land use/Land cover changes, the impact of land use/ land covers changes on biodiversity, the impact of cultural changes on the people of Sheka and their traditional resource management practices, legal and institutional analysis for sustainable use
of forest resources, and economic value of natural forest in sheka Zone have been sponsored by MELCA.

In relation to the advocacy work, MELCA coordinated a workshop to develop an advocacy strategy for Sheka Forest, which was attended by different NGO representatives and researchers. MELCA also became founding member of the Sheka Forest Alliance (SheFA), along with nine national NGO’s who joined the Sheka Forest alliance. Moreover, awareness raising workshops on environmental and cultural rights organized for different level cabinet members. MELCA also provided a workshop and training for local people from Sheka on human and environmental rights. In addition to these activities MELCA undertook training workshop on eco mapping for different stakeholders as well as training for eco-advocates with the purpose of strengthening their work.

3. Seed Diversity and GE-Free Zones

Seed diversity is the basis of food security and food sovereignty. Seed is a community resource that has always been shared amongst communities. Local seed exchange between farmers and communities has been – and continues to be – the basis of agricultural development in Ethiopia. Seed developed by the local farmers represents up to 90% of all seed planted in the country.  Even today, it is the farming communities of Ethiopia that are the nurturers of seed diversity and the producers of seed, not the governmental programs or the industry laboratories.

The threats to seed diversity in Ethiopia include drought, war, famine, cultural erosion and urban migration of the youth. Often communities only realize the value of this resource once it is lost. With this them in mind, MELCA has been coordinating actions related with seed diversity and promoting a campaign against Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) in agriculture. MELCA believes that issues relating to GMOs affect the life of communities. With the support of the African Biodiversity Network (ABN), different events have been organized in the past year to raise public awareness on the need to maintain seed diversity and to strengthen an anti-GMO movement in Ethiopia.