How lucky we were to have her. She passed away last week, but she generated so much life on this planet her legacy will surely go on for a long time. Wangari had a powerful, disciplined mind that earned the first PhD for an East African women, a Nobel Peace Prize (2004) and the respect of power politicians in her home country of Kenya, where she eventually became a member of parliament.
Her passionate, generous heart provided the conviction, the leadership and inspiration to thousands of women in her homeland who planted millions of trees to heal the wounds exacted by clumsy deforestation. Her Greenbelt Movement brought life and resilience back to the ecology of her homeland and empowered citizens who helped strengthen the democracy as well as the ecology.
She insisted that we always think in the 'We': together We make change that will continue long after the individual is gone.
Here is a short radio interview in which she draws the parallel between her life and tree. She asked not to be buried in a wooden casket.
Goodbye Wangari, thanks...t.o.d.
by Todd Derkacz
