A TRIBUTE TO PROF. WANGARI MAATHAI

The first woman in East and Central Africa to receive a PhD
The first woman to become a Professor at the University of Nairobi
The first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize
The first environmentalist to receive the Nobel Peace Prize
Indeed a life of firsts.

Prof. Maathai was born on 1st April, 1940 and raised in Ihithe village near Nyeri in Central Kenya. While she came from a humble background she was able to go places and achieve where others could not dare. During a time when most girls did not go to school, through the encouragement of her elder brother, she was able to complete her Secondary education at the Loreto Girls High School in 1959. She then proceeded to the United States of America through the “Kennedy airlifts” for her University education and acquired her Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Mount St. Scholarstica (now Benedictine College) in 1964. In 1966, she earned her Master’s degree in Biological sciences from the University of Pittsburg and her PhD in Anatomy from the University of Nairobi in 1971.

From a very early stage, Prof. Maathai recognised the connection between environment and peace. She has always tried to create awareness that poverty and conflict are a question of access, control and use of resources. She has continuously advocated for the sustainable management and utilisation of resources and equitable use of the same resources. As a member of the National Council of Women of Kenya (NCWK) in the 1970s, she encouraged women to plant trees which would in turn provide firewood, fodder for livestock, fencing material and improve agriculture. Later through the Green Belt Movement, Prof Maathai mobilised Kenyans to plant trees to help restore the degraded environment and improve the living standards of people living in poverty. In the 1980s and 1990s, she joined pro-democracy advocates to press for reforms and good governance in government after she realised that these played a great role in alleviating poverty and encouraging environmental conservation.

In 2002, Prof. Maathai was elected by the people of Tetu Constituency to represent them in Parliament. President Mwai Kibaki appointed her the Assistant Minister for Environment where Prof. Maathai used her expertise and knowledge from her background as an environmentalist to instil participatory and transparent governance and introduce the concept of grassroots empowerment.

Kenyans will remember Prof. Maathai’s efforts to have the government ban the use of plastic bags which were clogging the waste systems since they did not decompose. Through her efforts and those of fellow environmentalists, the government banned the use of thin plastic bags and imposed high taxes on the importation of thicker ones.  This was part of her campaign under an initiative called Mottainai (from the Japanese word meaning, “what a waste”) which encompassed the four Rs of Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Respect. Through this initiative she also encouraged the use of both sides of a sheet of paper to print in Government offices, to prevent wastage. This concept has been adopted in Government and has been included in the Code of Regulations.

It was a proud moment for Kenya in 2004 when Prof. Maathai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of her work in sustainable development, democracy and peace.

Prof. Maathai played a great role in many other positions including Goodwill Ambassador for the Congo basin and the UN Messenger of Peace.                                                                  

Kenya and indeed the world has lost a great woman who was not only an important environmentalist but also a mother, hero, reformer and ambassador.