Her marriage brought another challenge in terms of what she could be called. While her father was formally educated, her mother was not. The resulting dislocation and labor migration initiated an environmental transformation that was accelerated in subsequent decades. Wangari Maathai, The Challenge for Africa: A New Vision (London: William Heinemann, 2009); on culture, 160183; and on mother tongues, 220226. In 1966, Maathai returned to Kenya confident and with high hopes for making a contribution to the newly independent country. The separation between the NCWK and the GBM that occurred in 1987 as a result of political pressure from the Moi regime, proved another milestone in the development of the identity and stature of Maathai as an environmental activist. But as painful as it was, it seems to have given Maathai a measure of latitude to pursue her interests and achieve success as an activist. Upon her divorce, her ex-husband insisted that she drop his surname. Her concerns resonated with the needs and pains of ordinary mothers. Maathai, Unbowed, 5960; and Ndegwa, Walking in Kenyatta Struggles, 8791. In this regard, Nyeri was the epicenter of the freedom struggle. Later in life, as she became more engaged with various communities, her respect and appreciation of Gikuyu language, culture, and indigenous knowledge deepened and widened.17. Yet in my various struggles I have been fortunate to receive the encouragement and support of many individuals and institutions both in Kenya and overseas, who have stood by me in difficult times. 42. Such strengths also helped to secure funding for the GBM and to ensure, in some measure, Maathais personal security. It was an area populated by the Gikuyu people who lived in scattered homesteads around which they cultivated food crops and kept livestock.1 British settlers engaged in large-scale farming within the district, while colonial administrators entrenched colonial rule. Her time in academia gave her opportunities to engage in voluntary community activities that were not strictly academic, although regarded as part of university community service. 25 0 obj Wangari Maathai came from a family of Athomi (Maathai, Unbowed, 1112). Her life was a series of firsts: the first woman to gain a Ph.D. in East and Central Africa; the first female chair of a department at the University of Nairobi; and the first African woman and the first environmentalist to receive the . She even gave a speech at the AfDB Groups Eminent Speakers Program in Tunis, Tunisia, on October 27, 2009.62, In Africa she made history in many respects. Maathai was born in a small rural village known as Ihithe in the Tetu division in what was then the Nyeri District. These changes were advocated by the R. J. M. Swynnerton Plan of 1954. It's teamwork. While working for the National Council of Women of Kenya in 1976, Maathai came up with . Your current browser may not support copying via this button. She had a bucolic childhood spent in the rural Kenyan countryside and was sent to St. Cecilia Intermediary, a mission school, for her primary education. Her husband insisted on her adopting his surname. 44. But years later Maathai had the unique opportunity of going to school when girls in her age group were typically not given the opportunity of doing so. She was allocated a mini garden by her mother to cultivate and to learn practically how to care for plants. She also had close relationships with other African regional institutionsfor instance, the African Development Bank (AfDB). She is survived by two daughters, Wanjira and Muta, and a son, Waweru, as well as her granddaughter, Ruth. The life of Wangari Muta Maathai (19402011) demonstrates the complex interaction of constructive historical circumstances with the development of an individual. When I finally learned to read and write, I never stopped, because I could read, I could write and I could rub.9 After a period of attending primary school, it was decided she should join her cousin at St. Cecilias Intermediate Primary School, a boarding school operated by the Mathari Catholic Mission and Consolata Missionary Sisters. Wangari Maathai: storyteller On her demise, she was accorded a state funeral by the Kenyan government. Wangari Maathai. Duncan Ndegwa, Congratulatory Letter, December 2, 2004, in Ndegwa, Walking in Kenyatta Struggles, 595. 26 0 obj %PDF-1.5 This policy was implemented from the mid-1950s and accelerated in the 60s and 70s by the independent government of Kenya. Forest cover was also decimated as large-scale farms were subdivided and select forest reserves were hived off for settlement purposes. In her final years, she battled ovarian cancer. This conspicuous trajectory rendered her quite visible and a target of concern by the authoritarian state and political system.32, Upon Maathai being elected chairperson in 1980, the largest member organization in the council, Maendeleo Ya Wanawake, withdrew its membership. An interview with Joshua S. Muiru, November 2019. 24 0 obj Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004, Wangari Maathai spent her life fighting for and promoting democracy and peace, sustainable development, and the empowerment of women. The Third Annual Nelson Mandela Lecture, Johannesburg, South Africa, July 19, 2005; Sustained Development, Democracy, and Peace in Africa, Gwangju, South Korea, June 16, 2006; and the Keynote Address at the Second World Congress of Agroforestry, Nairobi, Kenya, August 24, 2009. Maathai's atypical and yet symbolic biography draws on two primary texts: Wangari Maathai's (2006), Unbowed: A Memoir . 25. Wangari Maathai was able to achieve a large degree of educational and professional successes despite her rural beginnings in a fiercely patriarchal society and within a male . Wangari Maathai, the most prominent environmental activist in Africa, was the 2004 recipient of the Alfred Nobel Peace Prize. The genius of Maathai and other women leaders was to turn this elite organization into a vehicle for the empowerment of rural women. 1 Her homeland was established by the British as the East Africa Protectorate in 1895 and then became the Kenya Colony in 1920; the independent Republic of Kenya emerged in 1964 after gaining internal self-government the prior year. In some circles, her move in the direction of elective politics was seen as opportunistic.40 Fortunately, this did not ruin the GBM, a tragedy that often befalls institutions from which prominent leaders emerge. It is imperative to appreciate how engagement with the GBM widened Maathais horizons and capacity to confront authoritarianism, interrogate democratic governance, gender inequality, conflicts and peace, and engage with broader concerns of sustainable development and climate change. Ecologist Wangari Maathai won the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize for her years of work with women to reverse African deforestation. This was a political maneuver intended to weaken the chairperson role and a calculated strategy to undermine umbrella organizations by the withdrawal of members. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Maathai is internationally renowned for her unrelenting efforts in advocating democracy, environmental conservation and human rights. Wangari Maathai was the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. 12. With the reduced role of the state and increased indebtedness of African countries, new spaces for other development actors emerged. 2021 marks 10 years since Prof . Wangari Muta was born on April 1, 1940, in Ihithe, Nyeri Province, Kenya during British colonial rule. Copy this link, or click below to email it to a friend. As elites, they were keen to build careers, and acquire wealth and status in the emerging society. The relevant conferences included: Environment and Development (Stockholm, Sweden, 1972), Hunger and World Food Problems (Rome, Italy, 1974), Population Growth and Development (Cairo, Egypt, 1974), Human Settlements (Vancouver, Canada, 1976), Science and Technology for Development (Vienna, Austria, 1979), and Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979). This may have shaped her strong ecumenical stance evident in later years. Suffice it to say, she mobilized local and international communities to save Uhuru Park from being turned into a concrete jungle. She benefited mainly from the tide of change which was sweeping the country, not because she had articulated her own political ideas.42. 54. In addition to her conservation work, Maathai was also an advocate for human rights, AIDS prevention, and womens issues, and she frequently represented these concerns at meetings of the United Nations General Assembly. Women were in control and were making the vital decisions at home, in the village, and at school. Their approach is wonderfully illustrated in a documentary Taking Roots: The vision of Wangari Maathai. 60. Timothy Njoya, We the People: Thinking Heavenly Acting Kenyan (Nairobi, Kenya: WordAlive Publishers, 2017). She was elected to Kenyas National Assembly in 2002 with 98 percent of the vote, and in 2003 she was appointed assistant minister of environment, natural resources, and wildlife. Wangari Maathai (1940-2011), the first woman to obtain a PhD in East and Central Africa, was a scholar, and an environmental and human rights activist. % By then she had acquired world fame which transcended her position as a member of parliament and as an assistant minister of the environment and natural resourcesa position she was appointed to in January 2003. Hence the proliferation of NGOs with concerns such as the environment, the development of microfinance, peace building, human rights, and the empowerment of women.55 This was accompanied by increased funding for civil society organizations due to increased concerns about the accountability of governments which were also perceived as authoritarian and corrupt. However, no healing of the scars inflicted on you, I am convinced, can equal the soothing of the Nobel Peace Prize you have now won. He also discusses the place of indigenous languages in liberation from cultural enslavement in Decolonising the Mind: The Politics of Language in African Literature (Nairobi, Kenya: Heinemann Educational, 1986). When she was growing up, her father, a truck driver, made sure she was brought into family discussions and valued her opinions. This source greatly helped my understanding of the She affirmed earth and water, air and the waning fire of the sun combine to form the essential elements of life and reveal to me my kinship with the soil.63. Henry Okullu, The Quest for Justice: An Autobiography of Bishop John Henry Okullu (Kisumu, Kenya: Shalom Publishers and Computer Training Centre, 1997); and Kabiru Kinyanjui, The Christian Churches and Civil Society in Kenya, in Local Ownership, Global Change: Will Civil Society Save the World? Wangari Maathai. Kenyan politician and environmental activist Wangari Maathai was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2004 for her involvement in "sustainable development that embraces democracy, human rights, and women's rights in particular." She became the first Black African woman to achieve such an honor. This was a rare occurrence in her male-dominated society. M. P. K. Sorrenson, Land Reform in Kikuyu Country (London: Oxford University Press, 1967). The GBM established strong footholds in the districts where land consolidation and settlements had taken place and where modern farming methods and marketing were adopted. 30. Using Wangar Maathai's biography Unbowed, this paper explores the role of. They are, however, not responsible for the views expressed herein or the interpretations given in the article. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Interviews held on various dates in 2018 and 2019 with Prof. Wanjiku Kabira, Rev. The first indigenous woman in East and Central Africa to earn a doctorate degree, Professor Maathai started school in 1948 at Ihithe Primary School. One of Maathais remarkable gifts and indeed a notable strength was her ability to build alliances between local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and international NGOs, with environmental celebrities, activists, and the press, thereby raising local and global awareness of grassroots environmental issues. << /Type /XRef /Length 71 /Filter /FlateDecode /DecodeParms << /Columns 4 /Predictor 12 >> /W [ 1 2 1 ] /Index [ 22 32 ] /Info 37 0 R /Root 24 0 R /Size 54 /Prev 82415 /ID [<27d5614c796589e23c265b2454e3ebce><27d5614c796589e23c265b2454e3ebce>] >> She challenged this in court, but her petition was dismissed. (Nairobi, Kenya: Leadership Institute, 2011); and Wangari Maathai, Unbowed: One Womans Story (London: Arrow Books, 2006). 13. 27. Within this paradigm, racism is viewed as the primary impact factor, or in the language of Wangari Maathai, racism is a "root cause." The study draws on the African philosophical framework of Maat as a lens through which to view Maathai's philosophy, and which provides conceptual grounding for understanding that philosophy. Kelly reflects on juggling motherhood and chasing the news. Thus, the NCWK provided an appropriate platform to develop and experiment with innovative ideas such as the GBM. . Modern farming methods were introduced to small-scale farmers through the provision of extension services and credit facilities. Lawrence M. Njoroge, A Century of Catholic Endeavour: Holy Ghost and Consolata Missions in Kenya (Nairobi, Kenya: Pauline Publications Africa, 2000); Samuel G. Kibicho, God and Revelation in an African Context (Nairobi, Kenya: Action Publishers, 2006); and David P. Sandgren, Mau Maus Children: The Making of Kenyas Postcolonial Elite (Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press, 2012). In discussing her childhood in her autobiography, Maathai paints a picture of an idyllic life set in a pristine and lush rural environment. But after returning to Kenya, she found that her career opportunities were limited. Maathais campaigns to empower women may have been rooted in these experiences of gender inequalities and marginalization.53, In the 80s most African countries underwent structural adjustment policies leading to economic and social reforms, the privatization of state enterprises, and the limitation of the role of the state in development activities.54 These externally initiated reforms impacted negatively on the provision of health, education, and other social services. 18. In 2005 ten heads of state of countries bordering Congo Basin recognized her by giving her the title of goodwill ambassador for the Congo Basin rainforest ecosystema responsibility which she cherished.61 I remember once visiting her office to find her immersed in the study of French so as to discharge the responsibilities of the new position. Commission of Inquiry (Public Service Structure and Remuneration Commission), Kenya, Report of the Commission of Inquiry (Public Service Structure and Remuneration Commission) 19701971: D. N. Ndegwa (Nairobi, Kenya: [The Commission], 1971); and Michael Cowen and Kabiru Kinyanjui, Some Problems of Capital and Class in Kenya (Nairobi, Kenya: Institute for Development Studies, 1977). When conflict engulfed central Kenya and some men went into the forest to fight and others detained, it was women who took care of their families: providing food, building houses, and in some cases educating children.52 When Maathai came home during the school holidays, this was the reality that confronted her. This, she did at high personal risk to her and to her friends. It became known as the home of renowned Mau Mau freedom fighters, outstanding postcolonial leaders, and intellectuals.4 Leaders such as the legendary freedom fighter Dedan Kimathi, former President Mwai Kibaki, and Wangari Maathai had their beginnings in the district. Accounts from friends indicate that both parents were devoted to the well-being and education of their children. 24. She was baptized Miriam at the Presbyterian Church of East Africa, Ihithe, to become Miriam Wangari. . 16. These groups played critical roles in shaping the values and politics that she espoused for social justice, sustainable development, and climate change. By mobilizing women to plant and care for trees, Maathai changed the thinking and practices of conserving the environment at a time when dominant global thinking on the environment and womens role in society was grappling for transformation. However, they were still straddling the line between their traditional culture and Western values.27 Their wedding was solemnized according to Gikuyu traditions and Western Christian trappings. Higher Education She sat for the Kenya Primary Examination in 1951 and scored Grade One. endobj Researching ticks at the University of Nairobi also exposed Maathai to the environmental degradation taking place in rural Kenya and its impact on the livelihoods of rural women. Maathai was born in polygamous family. 59. Funding was crucial, giving Maathai a salaried job and access to resources to assist rural women to launch and maintain tree nurseries. Mathaai was named Wangari at birth after her fathers mother, as was Gikuyu tradition. << /Contents 27 0 R /MediaBox [ 0 0 612 792 ] /Parent 43 0 R /Resources << /ExtGState << /G3 38 0 R >> /Font << /F4 39 0 R /F5 40 0 R /F6 41 0 R /F7 42 0 R >> /ProcSet [ /PDF /Text /ImageB /ImageC /ImageI ] >> /StructParents 0 /Type /Page >> endobj This formal education opened unparalleled opportunities in colonial and postcolonial Kenya. The continued existence of the Karura Forest in the outskirts of Nairobi city is another hallmark of her courage. In the forests of Aberdares and Mount Kenya, guerilla warfare was intense. By becoming a full-time paid coordinator, Maathai brought much needed energy and courage into the movement at a critical time of its development. 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