A woman who changed the world - Essay Example

Wangari Mathaai The first captivating thing that made me select Wangari Maathai who was a Kenyan is the fact that she was the first African Woman to win a Nobel peace Prize. She was also the first woman in East Africa to be awarded a PhD. Wangari Mathaai was avid about environmental protection which ultimately led her to gain the Nobel prize as well as establish an environmental movement called the Green Belt Movement (Maathai 67). She was a politician, an environmentalist, a humanitarian and above all a feminist which is another reason that drew me to her.

The fact that she faced all challenges of a third world country to excel internationally is remarkable. She did so many things to change the world with the most renown being a very passionate advocate of planting trees. She was concerned about the rapid increase in deforestation and the adverse effects it was having on the environment and she made it her work to campaign for planting trees. The other thing is that she gave hope and encouragement to the women pursuing higher education. She did this through attainment of her PhD as well as the numerous other education paths she took in the men infested domains without fear or failure.

She also encouraged women worldwide to be achievers hence the starting of the Nobel Women’s initiative worldwide (Maathai 127). Her life though cut short in 2011 has taught me that women should not let anything bring them down or deter them from changing the world. She did not let the political challenges in her country or her poor backgrounds bring her down. She also did not let the fact that she was a female and a mother prevents her from succeeding in every endeavor she chose. I also learnt that women in powerful position should use it to assist the other women.

Lastly, I learnt from her than anything is possible with hard work and determination no matter the race, gender or nationality. Wangari Mathaai was indeed a feminist. Even though her feminism was not so pronounced later on in her career, she was one at heart and openly for that matter. While she was a lecturer in the University of Nairobi, she openly advocated for the equal rights of women in leadership and education (Maathai 186). She did this without any fear. She also advocated for women to be granted equal rights in politics and well as in environmental sector when she joined politics and this saw many women follow in her footsteps and achieve greatly as a result of her feminism.

Class readings talk about feminists who are not only involved in lobbying work but whose achievements in life are worth encouraging other women to fight for their equality rights as well. There is discussion about the power of women which is achieved as a result of their hard work and perseverance no matter the challenges they undergo and they end up becoming highly recognized and appreciated later on. These reflections are carbon copy of the life and achievements of Wangari Mathaai. Work CitedMaathai, Wangari.

Unbowed: My Autobiography. Nairobi: Random House, 2011.