Wangari Muta Maathai, the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, founded the

Wangari Muta Maathai (1^st April, 1940 - 25^th September, 2011) was a Kenyan environmental and political activist. In the 1970s, Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement, an environmental non-governmental organisation focused on the planting of trees, environmental conservation and women's rights. In 1986, she was awarded the Right Livelihood Award, and in 2004, she became the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace.