Berta Ziemele was born on 28 September 1883 in the Code parish of the Russian Empire,[1][2] in what is now the Baltic state of Latvia, to Liza (née Kula) and Jekabs Ziemelis.

Returning to Latvia in 1910, Ziemele married Ermanis Pīpiņš,[1] (1873–1927), who was a book reviewer, journalist and literary critic.

[3] In 1919, she was elected to the Riga City Council[2] and began working on issues like public drinking and concerns focused around women and children.

In 1925, Pīpiņa became president of the League, which organized charitable work, such as founding a kindergarten, operating a library, establishing Sunday schools, and hosting educational and needlework courses for women.

When a law was proposed to force married women to relinquish their employment, Pīpiņa created a stir in stating her opposition, drawing the scorn of Kārlis Ulmanis.

She also worked on laws to provide state support for families and the poor,[5] and was often ridiculed by her male colleagues and the press for her positions.

During the Soviet period, she was considered as an enemy of the state, having served in the independent parliament of Latvia and her biography was purged from encyclopedias.