Wangari Maathai
Wangari Maathai
Wangari Muta Maathaiwas a Kenyan environmental and political activist. She was educated in the United States at Mount St. Scholasticaand the University of Pittsburgh, as well as the University of Nairobi in Kenya...
NationalityKenyan
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth1 April 1940
CityNyeri, Kenya
CountryKenya
Wangari Maathai quotes about
tree climate plant
When we plant trees, we plant the seeds of peace and seeds of hope.
fate voice earth-day
All of us have a God in us, and that God is the spirit that unites all life, everything that is on this planet. It must be this voice that is telling me to do something, and I am sure it's the same voice that is speaking to everybody on this planet - at least everybody who seems to be concerned about the fate of the world, the fate of this planet.
knocked-down persons has-beens
Every person who has ever achieved anything has been knocked down many times. But all of them picked themselves up and kept going, and that is what I have always tried to do.
teamwork running risk
I’m very conscious of the fact that you can’t do it alone. It’s teamwork. When you do it alone you run the risk that when you are no longer there nobody else will do it.
biblical expression free-your-mind
You have to know yourself, and that once you know yourself, then you cannot be bound by - because sometimes we are bound by other people's thoughts, because we are not sure about ourselves. But once you know yourself... I guess it is really an expression of the biblical statements that the truth will make you free! When you know, then you are free, your mind is free.
skills role-models roles
Those of us who have been privileged to receive education, skills, and experiences and even power must be role models for the next generation of leadership.
development doe needs
We need to promote development that does not destroy our environment.
teamwork men together
We can work together for a better world with men and women of goodwill, those who radiate the intrinsic goodness of humankind.
tree want way
That's the way I do things when I want to celebrate, I always plant a tree.
focus done needs
It is wonderful when you don't have the fear, and a lot of the time I don't ... I focus on what needs to be done instead.
inspiring children generations
We owe it to ourselves and to the next generation to conserve the environment so that we can bequeath our children a sustainable world that benefits all.
vulnerable tradition easy
Because I was a woman, I was vulnerable. It was easy to vilify me and project me as a woman who was not following the tradition of a 'good African woman.'
political-will people decision
The people are learning that you cannot leave decisions only to leaders. Local groups have to create the political will for change, rather than waiting for others to do things for them. That is where positive, and sustainable, change begins.
mountain relax forests
I definitely hope to relax when I get back hope. I will disappear into the forest and be rejuvenated by the beauty of the mountains.