Wangari maathai biography kenya

Within a few years, Prof. Wangari Maathai realized that the illegal and corrupt privatization of public land necessitated a more systematic and comprehensive approach to conservation. These activities brought Prof. Wangari Maathai into direct conflict with the Kenyan government. She was harassed, threatened, beaten, and jailed. Nevertheless, Prof.

Wangari Maathai and GBM persevered, earning national and global recognition for her transformative work. From to her untimely death inProf Wangari Maathai continued travelling the world campaigning for change. She touched the hearts of rural women, heads of state, people of every faith, in her community and across continents alike.

Maathai and her organization staged a protest in Nairobi's Uhuru Park to prevent the construction of a skyscraper. Her campaign drew international attention, and the project was eventually dropped. The place in the park where she demonstrated became known as "Freedom Corner. The following year, Maathai was beaten and badly injured at another protest in "Freedom Corner.

What had started out as an environmental movement quickly became a political effort as well. But I started seeing the linkages between the problems that we were dealing with and the root causes of environmental degradation. And one of those root wangari maathai biographies kenya was misgovernance. Maathai remained a vocal opponent of the Kenyan government until Moi's political party lost control in After several failed attempts, she finally earned a seat in the country's parliament that same year.

Maathai soon was appointed assistant minister of environment, natural resources and wildlife. Inshe received a remarkable honor. Maathai was given the Nobel Peace Prize for "her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace," according to the Nobel Foundation website. In her Nobel speech, Maathai said that picking her for the renowned peace prize "challenged the world to broaden the understanding of peace: There can be no peace without equitable development; and there can be no development without sustainable management of the environment in a democratic and peaceful space.

Maathai shared her amazing life story with the world in the memoir Unbowed. As well as having been featured in a number of books, she and the Green Belt Movement were the subject of a documentary film, Taking Root: the Vision of Wangari Maathai Marlboro Productions, She obtained a degree in Biological Sciences from Mount St. Scholastica College in Atchison, Kansasa Master of Science degree from the University of Pittsburghand pursued doctoral studies in Germany and the University of Nairobi, before obtaining a Ph.

The first woman in East and Central Africa to earn a doctorate degree, Professor Maathai became chair of the Department of Veterinary Anatomy and an associate professor in and respectively. Maathai travelled with friends and the press to areas of violence in order to encourage them to cease fighting. With the Green Belt Movement she planted "trees of peace", but before long her actions were opposed by the government.

The conflict areas were labeled as "no go zones", and in February the president claimed that Maathai had masterminded a distribution of leaflets inciting Kikuyus to attack Kalenjins. After her friend and supporter Dr. Makanga was kidnapped, Maathai chose to go into hiding. While in hiding, Maathai was invited to a meeting in Tokyo of the Green Cross Internationalan environmental organisation recently founded by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

When Maathai responded that she could not attend as she did not believe the government would allow her to leave the country and she was in hiding, Gorbachev pressured the government of Kenya to allow her to travel freely.

Wangari maathai biography kenya: Wangari Maathai (born April

President arap Moi denied limiting her travel, and she was allowed to leave the country, although too late for the meeting in Tokyo. Maathai was again recognized internationally, and she flew to Scotland to receive the Edinburgh Medal in April During the elections ofMaathai again wished to unite the opposition in order to defeat the ruling party.

In November, less than two months before the election, she decided to run for parliament and for president as a candidate of the Liberal Party. Her intentions were widely questioned in the press; many believed she should simply stick to running the Green Belt Movement and stay out of politics. On the day of the election, a rumour that Maathai had withdrawn from the election and endorsed another candidate was printed in the media.

Maathai garnered few votes and lost the election. In the summer ofMaathai learned of a government plan to privatize large areas of public land in the Karura Forest, just outside Nairobi, and give it to political supporters. Maathai protested this through letters to the government and the press. She went with the Green Belt Movement to Karura Forest, planting trees and protesting the destruction of the forest.

On 8 Januarya group of protesters including Maathai, six opposition MPs, journalists, international observers, and Green Belt members and supporters returned to the forest to plant a tree in protest. The entry to the forest was guarded by a large group of men. When she tried to plant a tree in an area that had been designated to be cleared for a golf course, the group was attacked.

Many of the protesters were injured, including Maathai, four MPs, some of the journalists, and German environmentalists. When she reported the attack to the police, they refused to return with her to the forest to arrest her attackers. However, the attack had been filmed by Maathai's supporters, and the event provoked international outrage.

Protests continued until 16 Augustwhen the president announced that he was banning all allocation of public land. Inthe government again planned to take public forest land and give it to its supporters. While protesting this and collecting petition signatures on 7 Marchin Wang'uru village near Mount KenyaMaathai was again arrested.

The following day, following international and popular protest at her arrest, she was released without being charged. Later that evening, she was again released without being charged. She remained there until Juneteaching a course on sustainable development focused on the work of the Green Belt Movement. Upon her return to Kenya, Maathai again campaigned for parliament in the electionsthis time as a candidate of the National Rainbow Coalitionthe wangari maathai biography kenya organisation which finally united the opposition.

Between andonly 52 Nobel Prize awards were given to women, while Nobel Prize awards have been given to men. Through her significant efforts, Wangari Maathai became the first African woman, and the first environmentalist, to win the Peace Prize. Maathai stood up courageously against the former oppressive regime in Kenya. Her unique forms of action have contributed to drawing attention to political oppression—nationally and internationally.

She has served as inspiration for many in the fight for democratic rights and has especially encouraged women to better their situation. In a interview with Time magazine, in response to questions concerning that report, Maathai replied: "I have no idea who created AIDS and whether it is a biological agent or not. But I do know things like that don't come from the moon.

I have always thought that it is important to tell people the truth, but I guess there is some truth that must not be too exposed," and when asked what she meant, she continued, "I'm referring to AIDS. I am sure people know where it came from.

Wangari maathai biography kenya: Wangarĩ Maathai was a Kenyan

And I'm quite sure it did not come from the monkeys. I have warned people against false beliefs and misinformation such as attributing this disease to a curse from God or believing that sleeping with a virgin cures the infection. These prevalent beliefs in my region have led to an upsurge in rape and violence against children. It is within this context, also complicated by the cultural and religious perspective, that I often speak.

I have therefore been shocked by the ongoing debate generated by what I am purported to have said. It is therefore critical for me to state that I neither say nor believe that the virus was developed by white people or white powers in order to destroy the African people. Such views are wicked and destructive. Following a trip to Japan in[ 76 ] Maathai became an enthusiastic proponent of the waste-reduction philosophy of mottainaia Japanese term of Buddhist origin.

Also on 21 Mayshe was awarded an honorary doctorate by and gave the commencement address at Connecticut College. She supported the International Year of Deserts and Desertification program. Six women representing North America and South America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa decided to bring together their experiences in a united effort for peace with justice and equality.

It is the goal of the Nobel Women's Initiative to help strengthen work being done in support of women's rights around the world. His father was educated in America through the same program as Maathai. She and the Senator met and planted a tree together in Uhuru Park in Nairobi. Obama called for freedom of the press to be respected, saying, "Press freedom is like tending a garden; it continually has to be nurtured and cultivated.

The citizenry has to value it because it's one of those things that can slip away if we're not vigilant. Maathai was defeated in the Party of National Unity 's primary elections for its parliamentary candidates in November and chose to instead run as the candidate of a smaller party. She called for a recount of votes in the presidential election officially won by Mwai Kibakibut disputed by the opposition in her constituency, saying that both sides should feel the outcome was fair and that there were indications of fraud.

Wangari maathai biography kenya: › Science › Environment.

Inshe published "The Challenge for Africa" with her insights into the strengths and weaknesses of governance in Africa, her own experiences, and the centrality of environmental protection to Africa's future. Within the garden complex there are personal garden plots and public gardens. The personal plots are available to residents living within 1.

Personal plot holders are required to contribute 1 hour monthly to the maintenance of the public gardens. The public gardens and orchard are maintained by plot holders and volunteers, and are open to everyone to enjoy and harvest. Inat what would have been her year reunion, her Mount St. Scholastica classmates and Benedictine College unveiled a statue of the Nobel laureate at her alma mater's Atchison, Kansas campus.

Wangari started the Green Belt Movement to change things. She taught women in Kenya how to grow trees from seeds, and the women were paid to plant trees all around the country. Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikiquote Wikidata item.

Kenyan environmental and political activist — For the Kenyan supermarket chain, see Maathai Supermarkets. Ihithe, TetuKenya. NairobiKenya.

Wangari maathai biography kenya: Wangari Muta Maathai was born in

Early life and education [ edit ]. Activism and political life [ edit ]. Green Belt Movement [ edit ]. Main article: Green Belt Movement. Government intervention [ edit ]. Push for democracy [ edit ]. Election to parliament [ edit ]. AIDS conspiracy theory [ edit ].