One of the world’s most significant animal allies has died, aged 91. Dame Jane Goodall was a primatologist, activist, ethologist, humanitarian, conservationist, climate change campaigner, and an inspiration to countless.
As a founder of many ecological and environmental initiatives, she worked tirelessly right up until she died in her sleep in California.
A determined, energetic, informed, brave and generous spirit, Goodall was born to raise awareness. This began with her pioneering studies, in situ, in Gombe, Africa, with one of the great apes, the chimpanzee.
Observing
And it started a continuum of activism which spanned seven decades and came full circle to the present day and saw her focus on the the ecological plight and protection of the planet, people, and the wider natural world, and ways we can work together, as human animals to help all animals.
Farwiza Farhan is the founder of the HAkA nature conservation NGO in Indonesia and a 2016 Whitley Award recipient. I spoke with her at the recent People for Planet Summit organised by the Whitley Wildlife Foundation.
She was among the last people to speak with Goodall. She told The Ecologist: “I grew up with heroes like Dr Jane Goodall. Prior to my being acknowledged on the cover of TIME magazine, I never had an opportunity to meet her in person.
“When I saw the magazine cover and learnt that Jane Goodall was the one who wrote about me, I was elated, honoured and filled with so much joy. Since then I have had the privilege to work alongside her at Planetary Guardians, and to get to know her personally. It never ceases to amaze me that her persistence and resilience continued to inspire us until her very last day.”
In 1960, Goodall arrived in Gombe for the first time, where her independent approach to observing chimps, one of our closest living relatives, has subsequently become legendary.
Voiceless
She was a young British woman working mostly alone, in the harsh conditions of the African Bush. And, operating in an era and in a scientific discipline dominated by men.
Her observations led to an understanding of chimpanzee behaviour and critically documented their complex relationships. Her ground-breaking discovery was that chimpanzees use tools, an observation that has been credited with “redefining what it means to be human.”
An empathetic approach to her studies was ridiculed and challenged by the wider scientific community.
However, an incident with a chimp who had lost his ear after a fight resulted in an ancient, non-verbal response of empathy between the chimp and Goodall. Gestural communication is an observational area now widely attributed to Goodall.
With accolades aplenty, she was adored and admired by people from all walks of life, which became her weapon. She was a single voice who spoke to and for many, and most especially, the voiceless.