- Title: Kenya: Saving the forest, one stride at a time
- Date: 14th October 2019
- Summary: NAIROBI, KENYA (OCTOBER 12, 2019) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) RUNNING ENTHUSIAST, JOYCE NDUKU, SAYING: "We want to thank the late professor Wangari Maathai for saving this forest because this is something that the Nairobians can enjoy to come run here and enjoy. As much as we are protecting the environment we care about the environment because this is a very dear forest to, not only Nairobians but Kenyans at large." VARIOUS OF PARTICIPANTS LINING UP TO RECEIVE THEIR PARTICIPATION MEDALS AND REFRESHMENTS PARTICIPANTS RECEIVING THEIR MEDALS (SOUNDBITE) (English) PEACE ACTIVIST, VASANTI NIEMZ, SAYING: "I think it can be an example for the whole world, not just for Nairobi or Kenya but really for the whole world to make this forest nicer, to preserve it and to offer opportunities for people to run, to walk, to exercise because I think for peace you need to work on everything. Mind, heart, body, physical, for everything else to work together." PARTICIPANTS STRETCHING VARIOUS OF PEOPLE TAKING PHOTOS
- Embargoed: 28th October 2019 12:55
- Keywords: Eliud Kipchoge athletics marathon Karura Forest Reserve Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai Green Belt Movement
- Location: NAIROBI, KENYA/ OSLO, NORWAY
- City: NAIROBI, KENYA/ OSLO, NORWAY
- Country: Kenya
- Topics: Environment,Nature/Wildlife
- Reuters ID: LVA003B12JYON
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Dozens ran through the forest trails of Karura on Saturday (October 12) to mark twenty years since the public land was almost lost to a private sale.
The forest in the Kenyan capital Nairobi covers more than 1,000 hectares and is home to wildlife such as duiker antelopes and civets, as well as caves used by Mau Mau fighters in their struggle against British rule.
But in 1999, Karura forest was in danger of being sold to a private company.
Environmentalist Wangari Maathai, who founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977 aimed at saving Kenyan forests, stepped in and led the campaign to oppose the sale.
She was whipped and beaten by guards during a protest in 1999.
Five years later, in 2004, Maathai became the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. She died in 2011 at the age of 71 after a long battle with ovarian cancer.
Runners on Saturday paid tribute to Maathai's campaign and the legacy she left behind. Those who led the run were members of the Friends of Karura - a community-based organisation inspired by Maathai's campaign. Saturday was the 10th anniversary of the group's formation.
Maathai's movement spread across Africa and has gone on to plant more than 47 million trees to slow deforestation and erosion. She joined the U.N. Environment Program in 2006 to launch a campaign to plant a billion trees worldwide.
(Production: Edwin Waita) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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