It's the little things people do that will make the difference.
  My little thing is planting trees.
Wangari Maathai

Wangari Maathai and trees

As a child, Wangari Maathai learned from her grandmother that a large fig tree near her family home in central Kenya was sacred and not to be disturbed. And she remembered gathering water at the springs protected by the roots of the trees.  Then later when she returned to her family home, she began to notice the changes in the environment: the drying watersheds, forest clearance,  increased desertification and the disappearance of the streams of her childhood .

She listened to the women in the village talking about the ecological changes and came 'to understand the linkage between environmental degradation and the felt needs of the communities'. 
She saw that trees were the key to replenishing the soil, providing fuel, protecting the watersheds and providing nutrition.

              “If you understand and you are disturbed, then you are moved
               to action,” Wangai said “That's exactly what happened to me.”

A Life of 'Firsts'

Professor Wangari Maathai was the first:
  • woman to gain a PhD in East and Central Africa
  • female chair of a department at the University of Nairobi
  • African woman and the first environmentalist to receive the Nobel Peace Prize (2004)
'The privilege of a higher education, especially outside Africa, broadened my original horizon and encouraged me to focus on the environment, women and development in order to improve the quality of life of people in my country in particular and in the African region in general.'
Wangari Maathai - internationally recognized for her persistent struggle for democracy, human rights and environmental conservation.

Nobel Peace Prize laureate

The goal of the Nobel Peace Prize is to award people who "have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses."

"a source of inspiration for everyone in Africa
               fighting for sustainable development,
                         democracy and peace". 
                                      Nobel Committee

The Committee also noted that through the Green Belt Movement Wangari had assisted women in planting more than 20 million trees on their farms
and on schools and church compounds.
Wangari Maathai on receiving the Nobel Peace Prize:
"The award wasn't only a call for the environment to be at the centre of work for peace; it was also an acknowledgement for the African people in general, for the struggles they face every day.  It was a demonstration of how important the environment and natural resources are in making sure we survive; and it was a message of hope. It was also saying to African women, in particular, that women can make an impact, although their ideas and actions are often dismissed. In addition, it was a recognition of the many citizens around the world who had been working on a set of similar issues – the environment, human rights, democracy, women's rights, and peace-building – and had not perhaps seen the connections between them. I was honoured to be the recipient."  
In recognition of her deep commitment to the environment, the United Nations Secretary-General named Professor Maathai a UN Messenger of Peace in December 2009, with a focus on the environment and climate change.

Wangari Maathai died on 25 September 2011.  The Green Belt Movement continues to flourish and the UNEP Billion Tree Campaign, inspired by her work, and now run by Plant for the Planet, grows in ambition and success.
To find out more about the Green Belt Movement
To find out more about the Wangari Maathai Institute and
the Wangari Maathai Foundation
To find out more about Plant for the Planet
That's the way I do things when I want to celebrate, I always plant a tree. And so I got an indigenous tree, called Nandi flame, it has this beautiful red flowers. When it is in flower it is like it is in flame.
Wangari Maathai
Images of Wangari Maathai from Green Belt Movement
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In Tottenham seven trees were planted in a ring over 400 years ago for reasons lost in time; the Seven Sisters area and the underground station are named after them. The seven trees have been replanted a number of times, always by seven sisters. 

The Tottenham Trees logo, shown on the right, is a silhouette of the Bruce Castle Oak with the logo of the Charter for Trees, Woods and People launched in November 2017, on the 800th anniversary of the Royal Charter of the Forest.