Law & Policy
National policy drafting, legislation and policy translation.
Explore research →Founder · Real Hope Initiative CIC
Chelsea Agbasiere
Lawyer, Policy Expert and Community-Centred Researcher
Building evidence and healing at the intersection of law, women’s health and climate justice.
I am a Nigerian-trained Barrister and Solicitor with an LLM from the University of Bradford, awarded with Distinction. I draft policy, run research with communities, and build programmes that turn what women and young people tell us into action.
224+direct participants in Breaking the Silence
8countries represented in the webinar
2national policies and bills worked on in Nigeria
XXXXpartner organisations — confirm before publishing
My story
From policy rooms to community-led change.
I learned how policy is written—and how far it can sit from the people it is meant to serve.
I trained as a lawyer in Nigeria and began my career as a Legal and Policy Assistant in a Minister’s office. I worked on the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme policy and the National Social Investment Programmes Agency Bill.
In 2018, I founded Real Hope Foundation in Nigeria. After moving to the UK, I completed an LLM at the University of Bradford with Distinction. My dissertation examined environmental justice as a pathway to sustainable development in vulnerable communities in the Niger Delta.
In Bradford, I founded Real Hope Initiative CIC. My work is informed by my experience as a fibroids survivor and by what women and young people tell us about their needs. I start with community evidence, take it into research and policy, then return with what changed.
Women’s Health
Breaking the Silence and Unmuted bring evidence and care into community spaces.
Explore UK work →Climate Justice
EducateHer Climate and Roots4Climate centre young women and communities.
Explore UK work →Research
Community-centred research that gives lived experience standing as evidence.
My approach →My approach
Evidence from communities. Policy that listens. Delivery that returns to the people.
Community evidence
Surveys, idea walls, walks, gatherings and conversations capture what people say and need.
Policy translation
Evidence becomes briefings, submissions and policy options, drawing on legal training.
Community implementation
Programmes put findings to work, designed with the people they serve.
Feedback & learning
Results return to the community and shape the next round of evidence.
Where it has worked
Breaking the Silence: preliminary survey findings from 82 respondents: 87% gained new knowledge, 71% reported reduced stigma, 92% rated the event excellent or very good, and 45% committed to seeking medical evaluation.
Unmuted in Nature: a gathering at Bolton Abbey responded to women’s requests for a space to continue the conversation.
EducateHer Climate: a five-strand programme for young women aged 14–29, shaped by community research.
Work in the UK · Real Hope Initiative CIC
Community health, climate leadership and social inclusion.
Real Hope Initiative CIC is a Bradford-based Community Interest Company, incorporated in December 2025 (Company No. 16938019). It is a separate organisation from Real Hope Foundation in Nigeria.
Breaking the Silence
A campaign on fibroids, endometriosis, PCOS and menstrual health, particularly among Black, Asian and minority ethnic women in Bradford. It included an international webinar (96 participants, 8 countries), an awareness walk (60+ people reached) and a conference (68 attendees).
Reach: 224+ direct participants · 15+ speakers · 10+ partners
Media and coverage →Unmuted
Gatherings bringing movement, nature, conversation and creativity together. Unmuted in Nature brought 31 women and 4 male allies to Bolton Abbey in June 2026. Unmuted Arts and Healing followed at Lister Park, Bradford, in August 2026.
EducateHer Climate
A five-strand climate leadership and education programme for young women aged 14–29, focused on climate literacy, leadership, nature-based learning, green skills and careers, and community action and research.
Delivered with Voice 4 Change England and supported by GenCGov at the University of Bradford.
Roots4Climate
A community-owned climate education, research and action programme in development with GenCGov and the University of Bradford, including plans for Public Climate Cafés, a Schools Climate Academy and community-generated research.
Partner names and logos should be published only after written confirmation. Add the confirmed Real Hope Initiative website link before launch.
Work in Nigeria
Real Hope Foundation
Founded in 2018, Real Hope Foundation works with communities in Nigeria on women’s empowerment, menstrual health and young people’s civic participation.
Visit Real Hope FoundationPolicy and public service
As a Legal and Policy Assistant in a Minister’s office, I worked on the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme policy, drafting and reviewing sections before its adoption by the Federal Executive Council. I also worked to advance the National Social Investment Programmes Agency Bill.
Add the dates, public record references and precise role on the Bill once confirmed.
Programmes
Youth civic participation, girls’ programmes, and menstrual health and hygiene work. Add only descriptions and reach figures supported by records.
Research & policy
Research grounded in justice and lived experience.
Environmental justice in the Niger Delta
Environmental Justice as a Pathway to Sustainable Development in Vulnerable Communities in the Niger Delta. University of Bradford, 2025. The dissertation examines corporate accountability, ecological reparations, just transition and gender dimensions of participatory governance.
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Selected writing
Nigerian Women are trapped in a dance of culture and femicide
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Environmental and Human Rights Protection in Niger
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From Law to Impact: How Turkey Improved Water Access and Environmental Rights
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Media & speaking
Ideas, evidence and conversation.
I speak on lived experience as evidence; women’s health and race; climate justice and race; and what policy drafting teaches us about delivery.
International Law Association Nigeria webinar — speaker on access and equity in maternal and reproductive health.
BBC interview on the EducateHer Climate Initiative. Add link and station details.
BBC Radio interview on Breaking the Silence on Fibroids and Women’s Health. Add link.
Evidence only matters when it reaches the people it describes.
For speaking, media, research collaboration and partnership enquiries, let’s talk.
Contact ChelseaContact
Let’s talk.
For speaking, media, research collaboration and partnership enquiries.
Real Hope Initiative CIC
Impact Hub Yorkshire, 34 Peckover Street, Bradford, BD1 5BD
info@realhopeinitiative.org
Instagram: @chelseaa_esq
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