Jane Goodall: Into the Heart of the Wild

On October 1, 2025, the Jane Goodall Institute announced the passing of its founder, Dame Jane Goodall, at the age of 91.  Ethologist, primatologist, and United Nations Messenger of Peace, she devoted more than six decades to studying chimpanzees and promoting a sustainable relationship between humanity and the natural world.

Early Life and the Making of a Naturalist

Born Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall on April 3, 1934, in London, she was the daughter of Mortimer Herbert Morris-Goodall, a businessman and pilot, and Margaret Myfanwe Joseph, a writer. From an early age, she displayed an intense curiosity about animals. Encouraged by her mother, she spent hours observing wildlife and taking detailed notes. At 23, after working as a secretary and waitress to fund her travel, she set off for Kenya, where she met the renowned paleontologist Louis Leakey, then curator of the National Museum of Nairobi. Recognising her patience and observational skill, Leakey selected her to study wild chimpanzees in what was then Tanganyika (now Tanzania).

The Groundbreaking Work at Gombe
In July 1960, on Leakey’s recommendation, Jane Goodall established her camp on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, in what became the Gombe Stream National Park. Without formal academic training, she began long-term field observations of chimpanzees in their natural habitat. Her patient, immersive approach defied scientific convention—she gave names to individual animals, emphasized empathy and social bonds, and sought to understand their personalities. In October 1960, she observed a chimpanzee she named David Greybeard using a stripped twig to fish termites from a mound—an act of toolmaking previously believed to be unique to humans. Leakey famously remarked that her finding forced science to “redefine man, redefine tool, or accept chimpanzees as humans.” The discovery transformed the scientific understanding of animal behaviour and cognition.

Recognition and the Establishment of a Research Center
In 1961, Leakey arranged for Goodall to enter Cambridge University as a PhD candidate without prior academic degrees. Her dissertation, The Behaviour of Free-living Chimpanzees in the Gombe Stream Reserve (1965), became a foundational work in primatology. That same year, she founded the Gombe Stream Research Centre, which continues today under the supervision of the Jane Goodall Institute. Her research revealed that chimpanzees hunt and eat meat, use complex communication, form alliances, and even wage territorial wars. These findings profoundly reshaped scientific thought about human evolution and animal societies.

From Science to Conservation
By the 1980s, Goodall had witnessed firsthand the deforestation and population decline threatening chimpanzees in East Africa. She gradually shifted her focus from pure research to conservation and education. In 1977, she founded the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI), a global organization dedicated to protecting chimpanzees and promoting community-centred conservation. Today, the JGI operates in more than 25 countries, supporting scientific, environmental, and educational programs. In 1991, she launched Roots & Shoots, a youth education initiative born from a meeting with twelve students in the Tanzanian capital, Dar es Salaam. The programme empowers young people to design local projects that benefit animals, the environment, and their communities. Now active in over 75 countries, Roots & Shoots is based on a simple metaphor: “Roots make the foundation; young shoots, though fragile, can break through brick walls.”

In this video, Jane Goodall spoke about her own story and work in 2017:

Global Engagement and Honours
Over the years, Dame Jane Goodall received numerous awards recognising her contributions to science and peace. In 2002, she was appointed UN Messenger of Peace, and in 2004 she became a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Her honours include the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom (2025), the French Légion d’honneur, the Kyoto Prize, and the Benjamin Franklin Medal in Life Science. Goodall published more than twenty-seven books, including In the Shadow of Man (1971), Through a Window (1990), and The Chimpanzees of Gombe (1986), all considered classics in ethology. She was the subject of numerous documentaries, notably Jane (National Geographic, 2017) and Jane Goodall: The Hope (2021). Her last book, The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for Trying Times (2021), has been translated into more than twenty languages.

A Tireless Advocate for the Planet
Well into her eighties, Jane Goodall maintained an astonishing travel schedule, speaking around the world to raise awareness about climate change, deforestation, and animal welfare. According to BBC News, she continued to spend around 300 days per year on the road during the final years of her life, always accompanied by her stuffed monkey “Mr H,” a symbol of her educational outreach. In a 2024 interview with the BBC, she warned: “We still have a window to slow down climate change and the loss of biodiversity, but that window is closing.” Her message was consistent: every individual has the power—and the responsibility—to make a difference through everyday actions.

Legacy and Ongoing Work
Today, the Jane Goodall Institute continues its twin missions: scientific research at Gombe and community-based conservation across Africa. Its programmes combine modern technology, local engagement, and public education to highlight the interconnectedness of humans, animals, and the environment. The Chimp Eden sanctuary (South Africa) and Tchimpounga sanctuary (Republic of the Congo) care for chimpanzees rescued from illegal trafficking. Meanwhile, the Roots & Shoots and Tacare programmes continue to inspire new generations to act for the planet. As Goodall often said, “Every day you live, you make an impact on the world—and you get to choose what kind of impact you make.”

Dame Jane Goodall is survived by her son, Hugo , three grandchildren, and a worldwide network of researchers, educators, and conservationists. Her death marks the end of an era in primatology, yet the movement she began continues to thrive through the people and projects she inspired.

---

Sources

• BBC News, Dame Jane Goodall revolutionised our understanding of our closest primate cousins, October 1, 2025, by Victoria Gill.
• Jane Goodall Institute, Official obituary and press release, October 1, 2025.
• Jane Goodall Institute – Biography and Legacy documents (2025).
• Roots & Shoots, About Us (Jane Goodall Institute).
• BBC Inside Science, interview with Jane Goodall, 2024.
• Video: Jane Goodall tells BBC how she became interested in animals, BBC News, 2025