Maria Wanjiru shows off a young tree-tomato fruit in her parent's farm in Mwea, Kirinyaga county/ ALICE WAITHERA



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The national bid to raise the tree cover in the country has attracted an unlikely but powerful boost from a six-year-old girl from Kirinyaga county.

Maria Wanjiru, a Grade 1 pupill at St Joseph Murinduko Comprehensive School in Mwea, has turned her passion for planting into an environmental conservation initiative dubbed One Girl One Tree.

The well-spoken pupil says she spends every minute she can in nature, expressing her deep love for the environment.

“I believe every child can help fight climate change. I believe hope grows when we take care of our planet," she said.

Wanjiru said she got the idea of starting a tree planting initiative after observing people cutting trees that they depended on for shade and regulating the weather in her village.

Fruit trees, she added, seemed more interesting to her as they would provide food in future and an extra income for farmers.

Planting trees so young would give her the chance to tend to them and ensure they grew up as she did, she said.

“As my trees grow, I grow too, firmly believing that the future is in our hands and we need to take the steps to take care of it now. Let’s protect nature, keep hope alive and take care of our planet,” the girl said.

 Wanjiru with her mother Mercy Kirembu waters her fruits trees in their home in Mwea, Kirinyaga county/ ALICE WAITHERA





Last year, Wanjiru participated in a pageant that saw her win a coveted national title, outshining other contestants.

She was crowned Tiny Little Miss Kenya, 2025, a title she proudly holds and uses to further advance her bid to conserve the environment.

Her mother, Mercy Kirembu, explained that Wanjiru’s passion was sparked when they attended a pageant when she was just three years old. Before then, the girl would follow her to the garden and help plant vegetables.

“At the pageant, she was excited seeing boys and girls playing dress-up, and walking down the aisle and was never the same afterwards.”

She started playing dress-up at home and Kirembu identified the passion she had and helped nurture it, combining it with her love for planting.

She explained that her daughter is a proficient public speaker who loves dancing, singing and socialising, attributes that made it easier for her to thrive.

Last year, Kirembu enrolled her daughter into the pageant where she bagged the Little Miss Kenya, Kirinyaga, and proceeded to the national competitions that were held at the Kenya National Theatre.

 Wanjiru at St Joseph Murinduko Comprehensive School's orchard where she has helped plant tree-tomatoes and other fruit trees /ALICE WAITHERA




After strutting the walkway, Wanjiru gave a presentation on her One Girl One Tree initiative through which she had planted more than 1,000 fruit trees at her school, home and the community.

“Overall, with her dress-up and creativity, she won Tiny Miss Eco-Project before winning Tiny Little Miss Kenya 2025 title,” the mother said.

With the titles, the girl retreated back to her community where she’s currently advancing her tree planting initiative, rallying up other young girls to join in.

Kirembu said her daughter has been a role model to her age mates and is now the captain of the Environment Conservation Club at her school.

“I am happy that I have been able to nurture and support her and now she’s able to follow her passion,” she said.

Faith Wanjiru, a teacher at the school, said she was shocked when one day, Wanjiru expressed her desire to plant a tree at the school during a lesson.

“This is the third year that I’ve been with her. I realised she had a certain drive when she asked to be allowed to plant a tree in the school. The message hit me in a deep way.”

Faith set a day and Wanjiru turned up with a tree that the pupil planted together with her classmates.

Inspired, the other pupils also came with seedlings that were planted in the school and she was named the captain of the Environment club.

Wanjiru shows off her crown at St Joseph Murinduko Comprehensive School in Mwea /ALICE WAITHERA





The teacher said they were all proud when she won in the pageant, saying the school and community is happy to produce a star.

For Grace Nduta, Wanjiru’s trainer, her ability to freely network and socialise sets her apart together with her quick learning ability.

“I was requested by her mother to train her to walk, speak and correct her posture and she was soon able to outshine everyone else.”

Nduta revealed that the plan is to start Environment Conservation clubs in more comprehensive schools and have more girls join her initiative to plant trees and create awareness.

This, she said, will ensure they grow with the right perception on environmental conservation and always engage in activities that mitigate climate change. She said Wanjiru aims at planting 10,000 trees annually together with other girls her age.

Wanjiru’s efforts go a long way in boosting the country’s forest cover, complementing efforts by the government to conserve the environment.

In 2023, Kenya Forest Service launched a strategic plan aimed at improving the tree cover from 12.13 percent to 21.03 percent in 2027 as part of the long-term objective of raising it to 30 percent by 2030.

The government is also implementing the National Tree Growing and Restoration Campaign targeting the planting of 15 billion trees by 2032.