Born Wangari Muta Maathai on April 1, 1940, in Nyeri, Kenya. There is virtually nothing known about her early life before she traveled to the US for post-secondary. Wangari went to university in the US; receiving a B.S in biology from Mount St. Scholastica College (now Benedictine College), in 1964 & a masters from the University of Pittsburgh, in 1966. She returned to Kenya in the early 1970's, in 1971 she received a Ph.D from the University of Nairobi, making her the first woman in either east or central Africa to earn a doctorate. She than began teaching in the Department of Veterinary Anatomy at the university, Wangari became department chair in 1977.
While working with the National Council of Women in Kenya, Wangari devised an idea that rural village women could help improve the environment by planting trees. Which would provide a fuel source & slow the processes of deforestation & desertification. She founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977, by the beginning of the 21st century the organization had planted over 30 million trees. Leaders of the movement created the Pan-African Green Belt Network, in 1986; whose mission was to educate world leaders about conservationism & striving for environmental improvement. Thanks to Wangari & the Green Belt movement, similar initiatives were adopted in other African countries including, Tanzania, Ethiopia & Zimbabwe.
Apart from her environmental work, Wangari also advocated for various human rights movements including, HIV/AIDS prevention & women's rights. She often vocalized these concerns to the UN General Assembly. In 2002, Wangari was elected to Kenya's National Assembly with 98% of the vote. The following year, she was appointed assistant minister of environment, natural resources & wildlife. Wangari made history in 2004, when she became the first woman in Africa to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
Throughout her lifetime, Wangari wrote a number of books: her first book, The Green Belt Movement: Sharing the Approach & Experience (1988), described the history of her organization, her autobiography, Unbowed, was published in 2007. Another book was, Challenge for Africa (2009), condemned African leaders as corrupt & ineffective & encouraged Africans to solve their issues independently. Wangari also contributed regularly to western publications like the Los Angeles Times & The Guardian.
Wangari Maathai died on September 25, 2011, aged 71.
Side notes:
Desertification- when once fertile land becomes dry (arid), which often occurs due to deforestation, drought or poor agricultural practices.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Wangari-Maathai
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