Laure Bitetera Kananura is the National Coordinator of the GEF Small Grants Programme at UNDP Rwanda since 2008. The programme supports local communities in their efforts to achieve more sustainable livelihoods and contribute to local and global environmental benefits.  She previously worked as a lecturer at the National University of Rwanda where her research interests were related to natural resource management. Laure studied at the University of Burundi where she obtained a Bachelors degree in Biology. She, later on, obtained an MSc in Oceanography from the University of Quebec at Rimouski (Canada). She is an active member of several social organizations in her country, most of them aiming at women empowerment.