Across the sea, to Africa—the birthplace of Humankind!

This Black History story is about one of my newest heroes—one who is still making history. Wangari Maathai[1] was the first East African woman to obtain her PHD. She was born in the region where Beryl Markham[2] lived, but Beryl was on the other side of the “social order”. Wangari had to buck the system that benefitted Beryl and the ruling class of British colonialists. And Wangari bucked it extremely well.

Africa’s “Mother of Trees” – Dr. Maathai is the founder and leader of the international “Green Belt”[3] movement which seeks to provide a sustainable livelihood for people by conserving traditional homelands for people who have been displaced or otherwise exploited. It is an educational movement as well, helping people understand the connection between environmental degradation and a multitude of issues, such as soil erosion, drought, hunger, and poverty.

I admire Dr. Wangari Maathai so much that I named a character in Bentari after her. From chapter 17, “Hostage and Hoax”:

“As reward for the hard-working children, and equally to rest their tired mothers and the warrior hunter-sentries, Shassi and Wangari organized the ritual story-telling and song-singing each night. Large fires were stoked that served both to cook the day’s bounty and also to belie the tribe’s depleted condition to any outside eyes that might be witnessing the village from outside the sentry line. With communal dining done, the women took turns telling the old stories—some heroic, some humorous. And the rested warriors took turns showing off their prowess by dancing wildly by firelight. One of the best dancers, Ntaki, was oddly missing, and no one could explain his absence.”

Dr. Maathai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. You can read about her books at http://greenbeltmovement.org/w.php?id=56 and add them to your library list as I have. Though I have not yet met her, I am pretty sure that Kenya’s “Mother of Trees” would join me in wishing all of us to “keep climbing” in her footsteps. Let’s make our world greener and more secure so that we all can stay safely in our homes and homelands.

Photo: from the Greenbelt Movement website (with apologies to the unknown photographer)

[1] See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wangari_Maathai

[2] See: http://www.bentari.com/Blog/Entry.aspx?pid=276&bid=51&beid=797 and

http://www.bentari.com/Blog/Entry.aspx?pid=276&bid=51&beid=796

[3] See: http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/