Hobart and William Smith Colleges

Wanjira Mathai '94

Co-Chair of the Global Restoration Council

Since graduating from William Smith, Wanjira Mathai ’94 has been an influential global leader at the crux of social justice, environmental sustainability and climate change.

Currently, she is chairperson of the Green Belt Movement (GBM), an environmental organization devoted to empowering communities to conserve the environment and improve livelihoods. Founded in 1977 by her mother, the late Nobel Peace Laureate Dr. Wangari Maathai Sc.D. ’94, P’94, P’96, GBM was envisioned as a way to mobilize communities to plant trees and promote environmental conservation and civic engagement at a time when Kenyan women reported streams were drying up, their food supply was suffering and they had to walk increasing distances to get firewood for fuel and fencing. GBM works with communities, particularly women, to plant trees to bind the soil, store rainwater and restore biodiversity. To date, GBM has planted more than 51 million trees in Kenya and created more than 100,000 jobs.

Mathai is also the chair of the newly established Wangari Maathai Fondation (WMF), established to advance the legacy of Wangari Maathai and to nurture a culture of purpose and integrity that inspires courageous leadership. The Foundation will lead the development of three exciting programs: a courageous leadership initiative (En-Courage) targeting youth, particularly women, to unleash their passion for civic engagement; an initiative targeting children (Wana Kesho) focused on building a culture of civic engagement in young children; and a museum memorial project developed in collaboration with global leaders - Boogartman + Partners Architects & the Ralph Appelbaum Associates. The Wangari Muta Maathai House will be a center for reflection, inspiration and action, and will host all the Foundation programs when it is eventually developed. Mathai is at the helm of driving the development of the WMF and seeking partnerships to further develop these programs.

Mathai grew up in Kenya and came to the United States to attend Hobart and William Smith, majoring in biology and participating in chorale, jazz ensemble and Hai Timiai. After earning her graduate degrees in Public Health and Business from Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health and Goizueta School of Business, she worked as senior program officer for international health at the Carter Presidential Center in Atlanta focusing on issues of disease eradication.

From 2002 to 2012, she served as GBM’s director of international affairs, managing international outreach and resource mobilization, before stepping into her current role as chairperson.

She is also co-chair, with Former Prime Minister of Sweden Göran Persson, of the Global Restoration Council which works with governments and international partners to inspire, enable and implement restoration on degraded landscapes, returning them to economic and environmental productivity. Maathai serves as board secretary at the Green Belt Movement U.S., and is a World Future Councilor, Advisory Council member for the Global Cookstoves Alliance and a member of the Earth Charter International Council.

Mathai wishes to dedicate this piece to her host father when she came to Geneva, the late Frank Pullano, the past President of the Geneva Chamber of Commerce and founder of the Geneva Scholarship Associates, which has sent more than 150 local high school students to Hobart and William Smith Colleges. Pullano, who also received the HWS President’s Medal in 2008, passed away Feb.12, 2016.