Wangari Muta Maathai 1940-2011

One of the rooms at Forum for the Future is dedicated to Wangari Maathai, a choice made by our staff in honour of one of the most inspiring and effective campaigners of her generation.  Very sadly, Wangari, who was born in Nyeri, Kenya, has died of cancer after a long illness in Nairobi on 25th September. She leaves three children and one grandchild.

I first met Wangari in 1984 at the first The Other Economic Summit (TOES) meeting and learnt much from her. A strong and forthright woman, she nevertheless understood the power of subversive strategies in achieving campaigning outcomes. The Green Belt Movement, which Wangari founded in 1977 under the auspices of the National Council of Women of Kenya was, on the face of it, a tree-planting programme that promoted the benefits of shade, water retention, soil improvement, easy to access firewood and so forth. But because the seedlings were passed from village to village by woman a lot more was transferred with them: tree and environmental care, yes, but also child care, women’s health and family planning advice, nutrition, education – the essential ingredients of poverty reduction. The Green Belt Movement also advocated employing young and handicapped people to nurture and guard the seedlings and to this day I can see Wangari telling us that the key to long-term viability of the 1000 tree plantations was to invite the local political leader to ‘open’ each one:  ‘Once he has cut that tape he can no longer oppose it!’ Over 40 million trees have been planted on community land. 

Wangari went on to help transfer the Green Belt model to other countries, working with the UN. She was also a tireless campaigner for democracy, challenging Present Daniel Arup Moi’s regime to move to multi-party elections and to end corruption and tribal politics. This caused her much harassment and several periods in prison before she was eventually elected to parliament in 2002, serving as Assistant Minister for the Environment in President Mwai Kibaki’s government from 2003 - 2007. 

Wangari was the first woman in East and Central Africa to earn a doctorate degree, graduating in 1971 from the University of Nairobi where she taught Veterinary Anatomy and became the first woman to chair a department and become an Associate Professor.

Subsequently, she has received many awards, most notably the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace. The citation sums up her achievements well: she ‘stood up courageously against the former oppressive regime in Kenya. Her unique forms of actions have contributed to drawing attention to political oppressions – nationally and internationally. She has served as inspiration for many in the fight for democratic rights and has especially encouraged women to better their situations.’

Our best tribute will be to carry on campaigning in her tradition. I know Wangari would not want it to be only her memory that lived on, and I can hear her now urging us to be furiously active on her behalf

Read more about Wangari and The Greenbelt Movement here