Every person who has ever achieved anything has been knocked down many times. But all of them picked themselves up and kept going, and that is what I have always tried to do.
Wangari MaathaiRead
Recognizing that sustainable development, democracy and peace are indivisible is an idea whose time has come... Today we are faced with a challenge that calls for a shift in our thinking, so that humanity stops threatening its life-support system. We are called to assist the Earth to heal her wounds and in the process heal our own - indeed, to embrace the whole of creation in all its diversity, beauty and wonder.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Sustainable development, democracy, and peace are interconnected, and we must change our mindset to protect the Earth.
Wangari Maathai's quote emphasizes the necessity of recognizing the intricate connections between sustainable development, democracy, and peace. It challenges us to rethink our approach to environmental issues, urging us to heal the planet and ourselves as we appreciate the diversity and beauty of creation. By acknowledging that our actions threaten the Earth's life-support systems, we are called to take responsibility and work towards a sustainable and harmonious existence.
Themes
SustainabilityPeaceDemocracyEnvironmentHealingNature
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech at an environmental conference to highlight the interconnectedness of social and ecological issues.
More from Wangari Maathai
All quotes →It was easy to persecute me without people feeling ashamed. It was easy to vilify me and project me as a woman who was not following the tradition of a 'good African woman' and as a highly educated elitist who was trying to show innocent African women ways of doing things that were not acceptable to African men.
Wangari MaathaiRead
I know there is pain when sawmills close and people lose jobs, but we have to make a choice. We need water and we need these forests.
Wangari MaathaiRead
We’re constantly being bombarded by problems that we face and sometimes we can get completely overwhelmed. [But] we should always feel like a hummingbird. I may feel insignificant, but I don’t want to be like the other animals watching the planet go down the drain. I’ll be a hummingbird, I’ll do the best I can.
Wangari MaathaiRead
As long as there is no trust and confidence that there will be justice and fairness in resource distribution, political positioning will remain more important than service
Wangari MaathaiRead
It gradually became clear that the Green Belt Movement's work with communities to repair the degraded environment could not be done effectively without participants embracing a set of core spiritual values.
Wangari MaathaiRead
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