Wangari Maathai Quotes

Corruption never has been compulsory; when the cities lie at the monster's feet there are left the mountains.

Let them say what they say. The truth is, I did not engage in corruption.

Do what you know is right, but try not to get caught.

No matter how mendacious elites may be, they cannot extinguish the forces for good in the world.

Very rarely do people make big compromises with their integrity. Almost every compromise is a small one that is easily justified. The downhill slide is usually a result of many little compromises.

Neither bribe nor loose thy right.

My job is to do what's right. And that's what I'm going to try and do.

Lord, give me the wisdom to know what's right and the courage to do what's right-even when it's hard.

Leaders must understand that some people will inevitably sell out to the evil side. Don't waste your time wondering why; spend your time discovering who.

In order to be true to one's conscience and true to God, a righteous man has no alternative but to refuse to cooperate with an evil system.

I'm not naive, I know that bad things happen, but most people do the right thing most of the time. Most people wake up and they try to do what's right for their relationships, whether it's marriage or family. They try to do what's right for their job. They try to make a better world for those around them, and that's what I want to write about.

What is the most precious thing in the world? I see now that it is the knowledge that you have no part in injustice. Injustice is stronger than you, it always was and always will be, but let it not be done through you.

The biggest difference between people is between those who are trying to do the right thing - whether or not they succeed - and those for whom the only question is how much they can get away with.

I will not avoid doing what I think is right, though it should draw on me the whole artillery that falsehood and malice can invent, or the credulity a deluded population can swallow.

The guiding principle of my life, 'the means are the ends,' has taught me that our participation in a corrupt system facilitates it and corrupts and therefore defeats us.

Let us strive for personal, practical integrity in every endeavor, regardless of how mundane or inconsequential it may seem.

In my heart, I never called one wrong.

The establishment uses that rationale all the time, and that's why we do what we do. But leadership requires some understanding that you can say no. People have base instincts, but the transcendent also appeal to them.

I am honest; I try to be truthful. I like people and wish us well. We are not always deserving of our own best wishes.

Our temptation is to look eagerly for the minimum that will be accepted. We are in fact very like honest but reluctant taxpayers.

No client ever had money enough to bribe my conscience or to stop its utterance against wrong, and oppression.

Good people will do good things, lots of them, because they are good people. They will do bad things because they are human.

The key to acting with integrity is to simply stop playing the game.

All you have in life is your reputation: you may be very rich, but if you lose your good name, then you'll never be happy. The thought will always lurk at the back of your mind that people don't trust you.

We must do what we conceive to be the right thing, and not bother our heads or burden our souls with whether we are going to be successful. Because if we don't do the right thing, we'll be doing the wrong thing, and we will just be part of the disease, and not a part of the cure.