Profile — Green Belt Movement

Green Belt Movement

1  video

Member since: 28/02/2008

greenbeltmovement.org/index.php

The Green Belt Movement (GBM) was founded in 1977 by Nobel Peace Laureate, Wangari Maathai, as a grassroots tree planting program and is now a vehicle for mobilising women and their communities for the improvement of livelihoods. GBM’s philosophy and approach are based on the premise thatsustainable development can only take place through recognizing the link between the environment, poverty, democracy and peace. Our model for community development developed over the past 30 years uses tree planting as the entry point in mobilising people on a broader range of issues. Communities become not only champions for their local environment, demanding good and equitable governance over their resources, but are empowered to stand up for their rights related to education, access to water, health and democracy. As a result of our programs, 40 million trees have been planted and thousands of women in rural Kenya have lifted themselves out of poverty; soil erosion has been reduced in critical watersheds; and thousands of acres of biologically rich forests have been restored or protected.