One of Africa’s illustrious daughters – Wangari Maathai – bid farewell to the mortal world on September 25 after battling with cancer. The Kenyan environmentalist was the first African woman to win the coveted Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. Sometimes described as the “Tree Lady,” the 71-year-old was at the forefront in empowering rural women through her Green Belt Movement to plant trees to save the planet.
As the world in general mourn the demise of a genius, who risked her life to save the environment, I take a look at five of her numerous statements she made on global platforms in a bid to make a difference.5) “It’s really amazing. You plant a seed; it germinates and looking so fragile, and within a very short time it becomes a huge tree. It gives you shade and if it’s a fruit tree it gives you fruit… to build and transforms lives… We want to see many Africans planting trees. There is absolutely no excuse to stop desertification because this is something that is doable and cheap
4) “It is very important for young people not to be afraid of engaging in areas that are not common to the youth. Get involved in local activities, get involved in local initiatives, be involved in leadership positions because you can’t learn unless you are involved. And if you make mistakes that is alright too because we all make mistakes and we learn from those mistakes. You gain confidence from learning, failing and rising again.”
3) “The environment and the economy are really both two sides of the same coin. You cannot sustain the economy if you don’t take care of the environment because we know that the resources that we use whether it is oil, energy, land … all of these are the basis in which development happens. And development is what we say generates a good economy and puts money in our pockets. If we cannot sustain the environment, we can’t not sustain ourselves.”
2) “We’re constantly being bombarded by problems that we face and sometimes we can get completely overwhelmed. [But] we should always feel like a hummingbird. I may feel insignificant, but I don’t want to be like the other animals watching the planet go down the drain. I’ll be a hummingbird, I’ll do the best I can.”
1)“It is a bit sad that we have a government in this country that is actually overseeing the destruction of the forest…there comes a time when humanity is called upon to shift to a new level of consciousness… You raise your consciousness to a level where u feel that you must do the right thing. We see governments mistreating its citizens to the fullest.. who is going to question when the law keeper breaks the law?”Watch full clip
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2 Responses to “Wangari Maathai: Top Five quotes to remember of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize winner”
She fought to the end
Great work!
Reblogged this on Vijana wetu and commented:
Great work!!