REVIEW OF WANGARI MAATHAI'S UNBOWED: 7 LESSONS BY FRANCISCA OKWULEHIE

Wangari Maathai's book "Unbowed" unveils her resolve and resilence towards environmental care and conservation. In a review of this book, we have been able to draw seven important lessons anyone interested in environmental advocacy can draw from.

1. Environmental Care Is Inseparable from Social Justice

Environmental degradation is closely linked to poverty, inequality, and political oppression. Sustainable environments require just social systems. Maathai shows that deforestation worsened hunger, water scarcity, and women’s burdens. In an excerpt from her book, this statement strikes a chord: “The environment and human rights are closely linked.” Thus, environmental care is a part of the human rights struggle and should be treated as one and the same. Environmental rights are human rights.

2. Small, Local Actions Can Create Large-Scale Change

Maathai shows that sustainability does not begin with governments alone; it starts with communities taking simple, practical steps. The Green Belt Movement began with women planting trees to meet basic needs: fuel, food, and water. Therefore, the sustainable environment we hope for is a goal that leans on our collective effort. For this, we need to educate people about the environment and why environmental care should start from the bottom to the top. Hence her statement, “One cannot protect the environment unless people are empowered.”

3. Women Are Central to Environmental Sustainability

Maathai makes it clear that at the center of environmental sustainability are women. Women’s daily interaction with land, water, and food systems makes them key environmental stewards. She emphasizes that empowering women leads directly to healthier ecosystems. When she says, “Women were the first to notice environmental decline,” this points directly to the fact that environmental awareness is most often noticed by women, who are usually the first responders and, for this reason, should be included in environmental decision-making.

4. Indigenous Knowledge Is Vital for Sustainability

Traditional ecological knowledge offers sustainable ways of living that modern systems often ignore. In Unbowed, Maathai draws on Kikuyu traditions that respected sacred trees and forests. With statements like, “Our culture taught us to respect nature,” Maathai brings our awareness to the importance of indigenous ecological knowledge, which intersects culture and spirituality and heavily influences African environmental perception and ways of knowing.

5. Environmental Protection Requires Courage and Resistance

Sustainable development often faces resistance from political and economic interests, requiring moral courage. Maathai recounts arrests and harassment while defending forests and public spaces. She clearly states, “I refused to be intimidated.” This should be a stance for ecofeminists and environmental activists on the front lines of climate education and activism. You must adorn courage and embody resilience if you desire to see the change you want in environmental protection.

6. Democracy and Good Governance Support Sustainability

Environmental sustainability thrives where transparency, participation, and accountability exist. Maathai links environmental destruction to authoritarian rule and corruption. In her words, “Bad governance leads to environmental destruction.” This statement clearly captures the reality of environmental sustainability in many countries, where ministries of the environment are largely theoretical rather than practical in the exercise of their duties. Many ministries lack transparency and accountability in following up on environmental protection laws and revising them when these laws affect the well-being and livelihoods of the people. Democracy, which is for all, when practiced diligently, will enhance any government that prioritizes environmental sustainability and encourages environmental conservation.

7. Hope and Persistence Are Essential for Long-Term Change

Sustainability is a long journey that demands patience, resilience, and hope. Despite setbacks, Maathai continued advocating for trees, peace, and democracy. Maathai’s remark in the later chapters, “I remained unbowed,” reveals that there is no quick fix to environmental sustainability. If it took thirty years to damage an environment, it will most likely require another thirty years or more to right the wrongs of previous generations. Hence, the fight for environmental sustainability extends largely to serve future generations.

In Unbowed, Wangari Maathai presents environmental sustainability not merely as conservation, but as a holistic struggle involving women, justice, culture, governance, and hope.

 

About the Author

Francisca Ogechi Okwulehie is an ecofeminist scholar and PhD candidate in Ecofeminism and Environmental Sustainability at the University of Lagos. She is the founder of Ecofem Tales, a platform dedicated to advancing environmental awareness through an ecofeminist lens.