Wangari Maathai: Fighting Desertification in Africa

Question

“If you destroy the forest, then the river will stop flowing, the rains will become irregular, the crops will fail, and you will die of hunger and starvation.” These are the words of Wangari Maathai, a Kenyan activist who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. During her lifetime, Maathai witnessed the degradation of fertile farmland into desert. Although she was a prominent advocate for democracy and women’s rights, Maathai is best known for her efforts to halt desertification in her native Kenya.

Desertification is a process in which fertile land becomes desert. Historically, deserts have grown and shrunk due to droughts and other natural phenomena. However, the spread of the desert in many parts of the world today appears to be caused mainly by human activities, particularly agriculture. One especially fast-growing desert area is in Africa. Here, inefficient farming methods, a dry climate, and frequent droughts have devastated huge areas of farmland.

Destructive farming methods are one of the primary causes of desertification. Herding animals, cutting down trees for fuel, and plowing farmland can all destroy plant life. Plants are a stabilizer, providing shade and holding soil and water in place with their roots. If a region’s plants are destroyed, there is nothing to hold the topsoil in place. It can blow away in the wind or wash away in floods. With the topsoil gone, there is no way for new plants to grow, and a vicious cycle of dryness and erosion continues.

As Wangari Maathai observed, poverty is both a cause and an effect of desertification. Poor farmers may focus on cash crops that deplete the soil’s nutrients and leave it barren. When this happens, the farmers are forced to move on and clear other land to farm. They may also need to cut down trees and brush for firewood. In the short term, these practices help people survive. However, in the long term, they destroy the land. As the available farmland and water supplies shrink, more and more people must compete for scarce resources. Eventually, many villagers are forced to abandon their villages for the cities.

Maathai and others witnessed the effects of desertification. They began campaigns to save the soil, primarily by planting trees. The organization that Maathai founded, the Green Belt Movement, is one of many efforts to rebuild the land while improving the lives of rural villagers. The movement has been responsible for planting over 51 million trees. These stabilize the soil, allowing it to retain water and support crops.

Trees are not the only way to prevent desertification. The Green Belt Movement and other organizations educate farmers about farming practices that slow or prevent erosion. In crop rotation, for example, farmers alternate high-profit crops with others that stabilize the soil and restore nutrients. In contour farming, farmers plow the land in patterns that prevent runoff. Some farmers have also begun to plant fast-growing crops such as bamboo to provide fuel for cooking, removing the need to cut trees.

Through the work of the Green Belt Movement and many other organizations, farmers are seeing their fields restored to productivity. However, the work is only beginning. Desertification is still occurring many times faster than land restoration, endangering the welfare and lives of millions of people. As Maathai pointed out, “Mother Nature is very generous, but very unforgiving. If you destroy nature, nature will destroy you.”

Constructed Response Question
Provide an objective summary of the passage.

Use details from the passage to support your answer.

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Answer 1

The passage discusses Wangari Maathai, a Kenyan activist who significantly contributed to combating desertification in Africa, earning the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. Desertification, where fertile land transforms into desert, is largely driven by human activities, particularly destructive farming methods, which damage the soil and vegetation. These practices include overgrazing, deforestation for fuel, and poor agricultural techniques, which lead to soil erosion and loss of farmland, ultimately exacerbating poverty as farmers are forced to clear new land to survive.

Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement, which focuses on planting trees to stabilize and restore the land. The movement has successfully planted over 51 million trees, helping to retain water and support crop production. Additionally, it educates farmers on sustainable practices like crop rotation and contour farming, which mitigate erosion and enhance soil fertility. Despite these efforts, desertification continues to progress at a faster rate than land restoration, posing a severe threat to millions. Maathai emphasizes the dire consequences of environmental destruction, warning that harm to nature will ultimately lead to harm for humanity.