Wangari Maathai - The Profile

Story by KTN News Kenya

Professor Wangari Muta Maathai was a woman of many firsts. Her unrivalled determination to fight for what she believed in throughout her life set her apart from the ordinary Kenyan woman. Here's now a summary of the fallen heroine's battles, controversies and achievements.



Story below by StridesinDevelopment

Wangari Maathai is a Kenyan environmentalist and political activist. In the 1970s, Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement, an environmental NGO focused on environmental conservation and women's rights. In 2004, she became the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for her contributions to sustainable development, democracy, and peace.

The Green Belt Movement (http://greenbeltmovement.org) organizes rural women in Kenya to plant trees, an effort that combats deforestation while generating income for the community and promoting empowerment for women. Since Maathai founded the Movement, over 40 million trees have been planted and over 30,000 women have been trained in forestry, food processing, beekeeping, and other sustainable, income-generating activities.

Wangari Maathai also recommends:
• Nature Conservancy (http://www.nature.org)
• United Nations Environmental Programme (http://www.unep.org)



Story below by Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR)

To commemorate and honor the life and work of Professor Wangari Maathai, the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) opened Forest Day 5, one of the most intensive and influential annual global events on forests, with a short video about the Nobel Laureate.

This film was commissioned by UNEP, ICRAF and CIFOR on behalf of the CPF.