Inspirational Nobel peace prize winner,Wangari Maathai, dies

September 26, 2011

Professor Maathai became the first African woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace. She fought to promote ecologically viable social, economic and cultural development in Kenya and in Africa. Her holistic approach to sustainable development embraced democracy, human rights and women's rights. In 1976 she introduced the idea of community-based tree planting which later developed into the Green Belt Movement, an organisation whose main focus is poverty reduction and environmental conservation. Wangari Maathai was a person who thought globally and acted locally, her movement is credited with the planting of 30 million trees in Africa. The Green Belt Movement said in a statement:
"Professor Maathai's departure is untimely and a very great loss to all who knew her - as a mother, relative, co-worker, colleague, role model, and heroine; or who admired her determination to make the world a more peaceful, healthier, and better place."

The Guardian Obituary: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/sep/26/wangari-maathai
And http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/gallery/2011/sep/26/wangari-maathai-kenya?picture=379537363#/?picture=379531905&index=0