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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in kid form

Answer 1

Wangari Maathai was a Kenyan activist who cared a lot about nature and people. She believed that when forests are destroyed, it can lead to serious problems like irregular rains, failed crops, and hunger. Maathai won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 because she worked hard to stop desertification, which is when fertile land turns into desert.

In Africa, desertification is happening because of bad farming practices, a dry climate, and droughts. When people cut down trees, overgraze animals, or plow the land too much, it can damage the plants that hold the soil in place. Without those plants, the topsoil can blow away, making it hard for new plants to grow.

Maathai noticed that poverty makes desertification worse. Poor farmers often grow cash crops that can ruin the soil. When the soil is depleted, they must move to new land and might cut down more trees for wood. This creates a cycle of destruction that can lead villagers to leave their homes for cities.

To combat desertification, Maathai started the Green Belt Movement, which has planted over 51 million trees to help restore the land and improve life for rural people. The movement also teaches farmers better practices, like crop rotation and contour farming, to keep the soil healthy.

While there has been some success, desertification is still happening too quickly, putting many people's lives at risk. As Maathai said, destroying nature can lead to serious consequences for humans.