Contents
Wangari Maathai
Founding the Green Belt Movement and linking environmental protection with women’s rights.
Green Belt Movement · Unbowed
- Born
- 1 April 1940
- Birthplace
- Nyeri, Kenya
- Died
- 25 September 2011
More people
Wangari Maathai
Wangari Maathai was a Kenyan scientist and campaigner who organised community tree planting. Her environmental work became inseparable from demands for democratic government and women’s participation.
Early life
Rural Kenya
Grew up in the central Kenyan highlands, where farming shaped daily life.
Overseas study
Studied biology in Kansas and Pittsburgh before returning to Kenya.
Career
- 1971
University doctorate
Earned a doctorate at the University of Nairobi, where she taught veterinary anatomy.
- 1977
Community organising
Established the Green Belt Movement through the National Council of Women of Kenya.
- 2002–2007
Public office
Entered Parliament and served as an assistant environment minister.
Selected work
Green Belt Movement
Community nurseries and tree planting addressed deforestation and rural livelihoods.
Unbowed
Memoir describing her scientific career and political activism.
Beyond work
Democracy campaigns
Opposed political repression and the destruction of public green spaces.
International recognition
Received the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize, the first African woman to do so.
Sources & photo credit
Biography ↗Life and work ↗Photo: Kingkongphoto & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel Maryland, USA. CC BY-SA 2.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
