Green Belt Movement

The Green Belt Movement (GBM) is an indigenous grassroots non-governmental organization based in Nairobi, Kenya that takes a holistic approach to development by focusing on environmental conservation, community development and capacity building. Professor Wangari Maathai established the organization in 1977, under the auspices of the National Council of Women of Kenya.

The Green Belt Movement organises women in rural Kenya to plant trees, combat deforestation, restore their main source of fuel for cooking, generate income, and stop soil erosion. Maathai has incorporated advocacy and empowerment for women, eco-tourism, and just economic development into the Green Belt Movement.

Since Wangari started the movement in 1977, over 51 million trees have been planted, and over 30,000 women have been trained in forestry, food processing, bee-keeping, and other trades that help them earn income while preserving their lands and resources. Communities in Kenya (both men and women) have been motivated and organised to both prevent further environmental destruction and restore that which has been damaged.

On June 5, 1977 in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, trees were planted, marking the beginning of what would become an internationally influential movement that challenges the hegemonic structures of that oppress rural communities in Kenya. The Green Belt Movement’s mission is to “mobilize community consciousness for self-determination, justice, equity, reduction of poverty, and environmental conservation, using trees as the entry point”.

In 2004, Wangari Maathai received the Nobel Peace Prize – becoming the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize – for her work with the Green Belt Movement. Although formal institutions, such as the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, recognized Maathai’s work, her work was not intended for legitimization but rather as a form of radical action against systems creating and reinforcing rural poverty. Her book, The Green Belt Movement is published by Lantern Books. Maathai was a leader in ecofeminist movement. Wangari Maathai is the founder of the Green Belt Movement. She grew up in rural community, called Ihithe, in Kenya and earned both a bachelor's and master's degree from universities in the United States. Maathai was the first Eastern African woman to receive a PhD from the University College of Nairobi.

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