Tribute to Dr. Jane Goodall

Tribute to Dr. Jane Goodall

The primatologist who understood chimpanzees

@Seema

Dr. Jane Goodall, the renowned conservationist and animal welfare advocate, has passed away at the age of 91.

She became the world’s foremost expert on chimpanzees after spending decades studying them in at Tanzania’s Gombe National Park.

By interacting with chimpanzees, she learned that they have emotions, and complex social lives, like us. She reported chimpanzees making tools like humans, and suffering from polio, infected by humans.

Later, she founded the Jane Goodall Institute, launched Roots & Shoots to empower youth around the world. She also spoke passionately about vegetarianism and compassion. She continued to be a voice for climate justice, animal rights, and environmental equity till her death today.

I had heard her name many times, and seen her photos, clips of treating chimpanzees with empathy. A lot of you must have seen how chimpanzees hug her with love and gratitude.

Only in the last year did I begin to understand her better. One witty line of hers that made me chuckle was: “It actually doesn’t take much to be considered a difficult woman. That’s why there are so many of us.”

Recently, I watched one of her interviews on YouTube, and I ended up crying as I listened to her encounters with chimpanzees. She shared a story about offering a coconut to a chimpanzee, who dropped the nut, because it didn’t need it. But then gently squeezed her palm. That moment of shared understanding was moving.

I have drafts on her but never completed them. Today, I had to. I quickly made the above art too, as a tribute to a pioneer.

Here are some memorable quotes from Jane.

“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”

“Only if we understand, can we care. Only if we care, will we help. Only if we help, shall they be saved.”

“The least I can do is speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves.”

“Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.”

“We have the choice to use the gift of our life to make the world a better place — or not to bother.”

“I like to envision the whole world as a peaceful place where people live in harmony with animals and the environment.”

She was a woman of substance who truly contributed to building a better world. The world needs people like her, women like her, now more than ever.

Rest in peace, Jane. Your legacy will continue to inspire generations.

Share your opinion on her.