Wangari Maathai was a renowned environmentalist activist who spent the better half of her life fighting for environmental issues. A Nobel Prize laureate, she was the first African woman and the first environmentalist to be bestowed with the prestigious award. Other than this, she has a number of other firsts to her credit, the foremost being the first African woman to be awarded with a doctorate degree. It was her excellent academic background and great skills that earned her prestigious positions at the University of Nairobi. It was in the 1970s that she founded the Green Belt Movement, which involved planting trees to conserve the environment. With time, the non-government organization expanded and focussed on environmental conservation and women’s rights as well. Towards the latter half of her life, she became a political activist. She was elected as a Member of Parliament and served as assistant minister for Environment and Natural Resources in the government of President Mwai Kibaki from January 2003 and November 2005. In 2006, France bestowed upon her one of its highest decorations, Legion d’honneur.