"Tree Woman" Wins Nobel Peace Prize

Wangari Maathai of Kenya has won the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize for her work with the country's Green Belt Movement, which has planted tens of millions of trees to slow deforestation on the African continent.

Wangari Maathai, known as "The Tree Woman" in her native Kenya, has been awarded the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts on behalf of reforestation, education and responsible development.

Maathai, 64, founded the Green Belt Movement, which has planted 30 million trees since its beginning in 1977. She fought for democratic change under the regime of Kenya's former President, Daniel arap Moi. She was elected to parliament in 2002 and is now assistant environment minister.

"Peace on earth depends on our ability to secure our living environment," said Ole Danbolt Mjoes, director of the Oslo, Norway-based Nobel Committee, which picked the 2004 winner. "Maathai stands at the front of the fight to promote ecologically viable social, economic and cultural development in Kenya and in Africa."

Maathai has led groups of women in planting trees at farms, schools and church compounds to renew vegetation that's been chopped down for firewood and prevent soil erosion that destroys farmers' livelihoods. The movement has spread to 20 African countries, including Ethiopia, Zimbabwe and Uganda.

The tree plantings aim to slow desertification, providing fuel and building materials needed to fight the spread of poverty. More than 300 million Africans and 46 percent of the population south of the Sahara Desert live on less than $1 a day and less than half of children complete primary school, according to the Commission for Africa, set up by the U.K. government.

"It's important for people to see that they are part of the environment and that they take responsibility for it," Maathai said in an interview with Norwegian broadcaster TV2. "When natural resources get scarce, wars are started. If we improve the management of our natural resources we help promote peace."

From bbc.co.uk and bloomberg.com.