--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am working to make sure we don't only…" description: "\"I am working to make sure we don't only protect the environment, we also improve governance.\" — Wangari Maathai" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b2/wangari-maathai-2479_environment_i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only_2884663.jpg" --- # I am working to make sure we don't only protect the… ![“I am working to make sure we don't only protect the environment, we also improve governance.” quote by Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b2/wangari-maathai-2479_environment_i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only_2884663.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b2/wangari-maathai-2479_environment_i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only_2884663.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b2/wangari-maathai-2479_environment_i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only_2884663.jpg) > “I am working to make sure we don't only protect the environment, we also improve governance.” [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Environmental protection should be paired with strong governance to ensure sustainable outcomes. **In simple terms:** Protect nature and improve governance together. Key Takeaway Integrate ecological and political reforms. Themes environment governance sustainability policy Mood optimistic determined Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - environmental policy - NGO work - community projects Key Concepts systems thinking leadership public administration Questions to Reflect On - How can citizens influence better governance? - What policies best link environmental and political goals? A Different Perspective Effective governance is often hindered by corruption and inertia. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Governance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/governance/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Protect the environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protect-the-environment/) ## Related quotes > [You cannot protect the environment unless you empower people, you inform them, and you help them understand that these resources are their own, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/you-cannot-protect-the-environment-unless-you-empower-people-you/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [If government ownership of land and natural resources was the best way to protect the environment, then we should have found a Garden of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-wallop/if-government-ownership-of-land-and-natural-resources-was-the-best/) [Malcolm Wallop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-wallop/) > [I don't believe that the science is settled on man-made climate change. And so - while I live in Colorado - you see where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-buck/i-don-t-believe-that-the-science-is-settled-on-man-made-climate/) [Ken Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-buck/) > [The need to protect the environment has emerged as an undeniably important priority for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-cole/the-need-to-protect-the-environment-has-emerged-as-an-undeniably/) [Lily Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-cole/) > [We don't have to protect the environment, the Second Coming is at hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-watt/we-don-t-have-to-protect-the-environment-the-second-coming-is-at-hand/) James Watt > [The market is a brilliant system for the exchange of goods and services, but it doesn't protect the environment unless it's regulated, it doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-livingstone/the-market-is-a-brilliant-system-for-the-exchange-of-goods-and/) [Ken Livingstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-livingstone/) > [The fact that the federal government is the nation's greatest environmental villain has not stopped activists from reflexively turning to politicians to “protect the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bergland/the-fact-that-the-federal-government-is-the-nation-s-greatest/) [David Bergland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bergland/) > [Why has it seemed that the only way to protect the environment is with heavy-handed government regulation?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gale-norton/why-has-it-seemed-that-the-only-way-to-protect-the-environment-is/) [Gale Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gale-norton/) > [I have a plan to protect the environment so that we leave this place in better shape to our children than we were handed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kerry/i-have-a-plan-to-protect-the-environment-so-that-we-leave-this-place/) [John F. Kerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kerry/) > [We came to see the benefits for working people of common employment rights, guaranteed throughout the EU to prevent a race to the bottom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-benn/we-came-to-see-the-benefits-for-working-people-of-common-employment/) [Hilary Benn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-benn/) > [You cannot, for instance, sustainably protect the environment if the majority of the people are still in primitive agriculture leading to the encroachment of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoweri-museveni/you-cannot-for-instance-sustainably-protect-the-environment-if-the/) [Yoweri Museveni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoweri-museveni/) > [We must guard against the overreaching hand of big government trying to take away our freedom. And we must always protect the environment in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-forbes/we-must-guard-against-the-overreaching-hand-of-big-government-trying/) [Steve Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-forbes/) > [What we've proven is that you can protect the environment, use it wisely and grow the economy and that there is no conflict between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-babbitt/what-we-ve-proven-is-that-you-can-protect-the-environment-use-it/) [Bruce Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-babbitt/) > [The portfolio standard was enacted when I was secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection. It created investment, generated jobs, and gave a boost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-mcginty/the-portfolio-standard-was-enacted-when-i-was-secretary-of-the/) [Katie McGinty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-mcginty/) > [“You can not protect the environment unless you empower people, you inform them, and you help them understand that these resources are their own,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-not-protect-the-environment-unless-you-empower-people-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Wangari Maathai > [For us who are now in power, we need to be challenged to serve the people and ignore our own egos and personal interests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/for-us-who-are-now-in-power-we-need-to-be-challenged-to-serve-the/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [We cannot tire or give up. We owe it to the present and future generations of all species to rise up and walk!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/we-cannot-tire-or-give-up-we-owe-it-to-the-present-and-future/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [What I am trying to say is that they need to learn to rely on themselves and to learn from other people, and when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/what-i-am-trying-to-say-is-that-they-need-to-learn-to-rely-on/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [As long as there is no trust and confidence that there will be justice and fairness in resource distribution, political positioning will remain more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/as-long-as-there-is-no-trust-and-confidence-that-there-will-be/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [If Africa is left behind, she is going to continue pumping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, especially carbon. She's going to continue logging the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/if-africa-is-left-behind-she-is-going-to-continue-pumping-greenhouse/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [That's the way I do things when I want to celebrate, I always plant a tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/that-s-the-way-i-do-things-when-i-want-to-celebrate-i-always-plant-a/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [I think that for anybody who has worked in the civil society, government bureaucracy moves very very slowly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/i-think-that-for-anybody-who-has-worked-in-the-civil-society/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [I have seen a lot of men, for example, who will make a will and include their daughters whether they are married or not.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/i-have-seen-a-lot-of-men-for-example-who-will-make-a-will-and-include/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [I was particularly talking with respect to aid, because that to me is one area that can make people so dependent, and unfortunately, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/i-was-particularly-talking-with-respect-to-aid-because-that-to-me-is/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [African women in general need to know that it's OK for them to be the way they are - to see the way they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/african-women-in-general-need-to-know-that-it-s-ok-for-them-to-be-the/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [As a scientist I cannot say we don't want to hear anything about GMOs, because these are advances in science. But I think its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/as-a-scientist-i-cannot-say-we-don-t-want-to-hear-anything-about-gmos/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [When I first started, it was really an innocent response to the needs of women in rural areas. When we started planting trees to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/when-i-first-started-it-was-really-an-innocent-response-to-the-needs/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [Monsanto will not come empty-handed. Monsanto will come with a big bag of money. And because these governments are poor, when they are shown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/monsanto-will-not-come-empty-handed-monsanto-will-come-with-a-big-bag/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [Why has there been so much secrecy about AIDS? When you ask where did the virus come from, it raises a lot of flags.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/why-has-there-been-so-much-secrecy-about-aids-when-you-ask-where-did/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [I stand before you and the world humbled by this recognition and uplifted by the honour of being the 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/i-stand-before-you-and-the-world-humbled-by-this-recognition-and/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) [Explore all 164 Wangari Maathai quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) ## More Environment quotes > [I feel like the future is unwritten. So many of the things that we write now haven't been about educating people on the environment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flansburgh/i-feel-like-the-future-is-unwritten-so-many-of-the-things-that-we/) [John Flansburgh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flansburgh/) > [This welfare for wealthy companies wastes taxpayer dollars, harms the environment, and makes a mockery of the recent reductions in federal social spending programs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/this-welfare-for-wealthy-companies-wastes-taxpayer-dollars-harms-the/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [Plainly, the environment must be a living one, directed by a higher intelligence, arranged by an adult who is prepared for his mission.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/plainly-the-environment-must-be-a-living-one-directed-by-a-higher/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [They paved paradise and put up a parkin lot With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swingin' hot spot Don't it always seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/they-paved-paradise-and-put-up-a-parkin-lot-with-a-pink-hotel-a/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [To assist a child we must provide him with an environment which will enable him to develop freely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/to-assist-a-child-we-must-provide-him-with-an-environment-which-will/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Daily life is both the subject and environment of the work I am making.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-henrot/daily-life-is-both-the-subject-and-environment-of-the-work-i-am-making/) [Camille Henrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-henrot/) > [If, as I anticipate, a wide array of personal, portable information/communication devices becomes increasingly important and widespread for information-intensive users, it will be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/if-as-i-anticipate-a-wide-array-of-personal-portable-information/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Create an environment for people to fail, to learn, and to grow. Their creativity and productivity will increase.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/create-an-environment-for-people-to-fail-to-learn-and-to-grow-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are many more traits that the climate deniers share with the creationists and Holocaust deniers and others who distort the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-r-prothero/there-are-many-more-traits-that-the-climate-deniers-share-with-the/) [Donald R. Prothero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-r-prothero/) > [Assuming normal winter weather, we currently anticipate the coal markets to remain difficult through 2015; while we always strive to operate a full capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-craft/assuming-normal-winter-weather-we-currently-anticipate-the-coal/) [Joe Craft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-craft/) > [It's the same with this idea of a literate public, and also of a democracy in which people have access to and really read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hass/it-s-the-same-with-this-idea-of-a-literate-public-and-also-of-a/) [Robert Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hass/) > [Of course, learning is strengthened and solidified when it occurs in a safe, secure and normal environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-bertrand-aristide/of-course-learning-is-strengthened-and-solidified-when-it-occurs-in-a/) [Jean-Bertrand Aristide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-bertrand-aristide/) [Browse all 8,669 Environment quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I am working to make sure we don't only protect the environment, we also improve governance.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Wangari Maathai" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only-protect-the-environment-we/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Environment" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only-protect-the-environment-we/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b2/wangari-maathai-2479_environment_i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only_2884663.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b2/wangari-maathai-2479_environment_i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only_2884663.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b2/wangari-maathai-2479_environment_i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only_2884663.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I am working to make sure we don't only protect the environment, we also improve governance.” — Wangari Maathai", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Wangari Maathai", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I am working to make sure...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only-protect-the-environment-we/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/i-am-working-to-make-sure-we-don-t-only-protect-the-environment-we/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```