Wangari Muta Maathai was born in Kenya in 1940. As the eldest daughter of six children, Maathai might have been expected to forgoÌýeducation in order to help run the household. But her parentsÌýencouraged their daughter's schooling and in the early 60s she won a scholarship to Mount St Scholastica College in Kansas. In 1964Ìýshe graduated in Biological Science and remained in America to study for herÌýMaster of Science.ÌýWhen sheÌýreturned to Africa toÌýteach and to study atÌýthe University of Nairobi, she became the first woman in East and Central Africa to obtain aÌýdoctorate. She went on to become the first woman to hold an associate professorship at the university and the first woman to chair a department.Ìý
But it was whilstÌýworking with theÌýNational Council of Women of Kenya that Wangari's simple ideaÌýof encouraging women toÌýplant and tend trees really took hold.ÌýThousands of women benefitted from the employment - as did the environment.ÌýThe Green Belt Movement was launchedÌýin 1977, and in 1986 a Green Belt network wasÌýestablished across Africa.ÌýGMB aimed to do more than grow trees, it wanted to show people that they could be responsible for their own lives.
Wangari is active on many issues,ÌýfightingÌýtirelessly for democracy, human rights as well as the environment.ÌýShe has received many awards and has been honoured in many countries and by many institutions,Ìýbut it is her work with the Green Belt Movement that brought her the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 'for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace'.Ìý She is the first African woman to receive the prize.Ìý
Ìý
Elsewhere on the web
Disclaimer: The ´óÏó´«Ã½ is not responsible for the content of external websites.
