A: I'm planning to teach a kite-making class for the children in my apartment complex during winter break. B: Kites in winter sound like fun. How many children do you expect? A: About ten, and most of them are between seven and nine. I'm planning to hold the class in the playground on two Saturday mornings. B: It's often freezing outside in January. I suggest that you build the kites indoors first and fly them outside only when the wind is right. A: Good point. Our building has a meeting room, so I'll ask the manager whether we can use it. B: Also, I suggest that you prepare a picture guide for each step, because the youngest children may not be able to read long instructions. A: I'm planning to sketch it this weekend. Could you check it before I make copies? B: Of course. Email it to me tonight, and I suggest that you make a sample kite yourself before the first class.

Wangari Maathai was born in Kenya in 1940 and became the first woman in East and Central Africa to earn a doctorate. In 1977, she founded the Green Belt Movement, which encouraged women to plant trees in their communities. Not only did the movement fight the loss of forests, but it also helped women improve their lives. Over the following decades, the movement planted tens of millions of trees. Maathai also linked this work to democracy and women's rights, and in 2002 she was elected to Kenya's parliament. In 2004, she received the Nobel Peace Prize, which honored her contribution to sustainable development, democracy, and peace. Not until that year did any African woman win the prize. Her life shows how one person's idea can grow into the work of thousands.