Wangari Maathai was born in 1940, in Nyeri, Kenya. She was the first woman to receive a doctorate degree in East and Central Africa. In 1964, she received a degree in Biological Sciences from Mount St. Scholastica College. In 1966, she received a Master of Science degree from Pittsburgh University (Dorfman, 2004). In 1971, Wangari Maathai received a Ph.D. after undertaking doctoral studies in the University of Nairobi and Germany. In 1976 and 1977, she became an associate professor and the head of the Department of Veterinary Anatomy, University of Nairobi. She became the first woman in the region to get these positions. While serving as a chairman of the national Council of Women in 1981-1987, Wangari Maathai introduced tree planting idea in the general public. She went on by developing her ideas into a an international organization, the Green Belt Movement (GBM), that focused in tree planting with women groups so that they could preserve the environment and enhance their lives. Through GMB, she helped women to plant more than 20 million trees on church compounds, schools and farms (Dorfman, 2004).
Internationally, Wangari Maathai is renowned for her tireless struggle for human rights, environmental preservation and democracy. When the Kenyan government wanted to construct a skyscraper in Uhuru Park, the single park in the heart of Nairobi, she organized protests which led to the abandonment of the construction. She was harassed and sent to prison due to her humanity struggles. She went on to speak on behalf of her fellow women at special conferences of the General Assembly and addressed the United Nations on numerous occasions. Wangari Maathai served on the Commission on the Future and the Commission for Global Governance (Dorfman, 2004).
In conclusion, Maathai was a great woman and she received more than 20 awards for her hard work in environmental, health and education issues. These awards include the Nobel Peace prize she received in 2004. In 2006, she received a trophy from the Kenya national human rights commission for her persuasive contribution towards humanity. She was elected as a member of parliament in 2002 and selected as Assistant Minister for Environment, Natural Resources and Wildlife in Kenya. She succumbed to ovarian cancer on 25 September 2011.
References
Dorfman, A. (2004). Manifesto for Another World: Voices from Beyond the Dark : Words of Witness from the Dalai Lama, Juliana Dogbadzi, Marian Wright Edelman, Baltasar Garzón, Vaclav Havel, Ka Hsaw Wa, Rigoberta Menchú Tum, Bobby Muller, Digna Ochoa, Marina Pisklakova, Sister Helen Prejean, José Ramos-Horta, Oscar Arias Sánchez, Kailash Satyarthi, Desmond Tutu, Koigi Wa Wamwere, Elie Wiesel, José Zalaquett, and Many Others. New York: Seven Stories …