Jane Goodall

Jane Goodall is a noted

humanitarian, environmentalist, and
has spent many years observing the
behaviour of Chimpanzees in their
native habitat.
"Chimpanzees have given me so much.
The long hours spent with them in the
forest have enriched my life beyond
measure. What I have learned from
them has shaped my understanding of
human behavior, of our place in
nature."
- Jane Goodall
Biography Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall was born on, 3rd April, 1934 in London, England.
Her childhood ambition was to spend time with animals in the wild.
In particular, she was drawn to the African continent and the dream
of seeing wild animals in their native habitat. It was an unusual
ambition for a girl at the time, but it was an ambition supported by
her parents, especially her mother. After the war, Jane left school and
found work as a secretary at Oxford University. In 1956, Jane, jumped
at the opportunity to travel to a friend's farm in Kenya.
It was here in Kenya that Jane met the famous anthropologist
and paleontologist, Dr. Louis S.B. Leakey. Leakey was impressed with
Jane's enthusiasm and knowledge of Africa and wildlife. As a result,
he decided to take Jane to Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania on a fossilhunting expedition.
In 1960, Leakey and Jane began an important study of wild
chimpanzees by Lake Tanganyika in the Gombe Stream Chimpanzee
reserve.
With great patience and perseverance, the chimpanzee's slowly
revealed some fascinating habits to the group. These included meat
eating - (Chimpanzees had assumed to be vegetarian). Also, Jane

saw Chimpanzees making a 'tool' out of tree bark to use when

extracting termites. This was an important discovery because at the
time, it was assumed only humans made tools. As Jane's companion,
Louis Leakey said at the time:
"Now we must redefine tool, redefine Man, or accept chimpanzees as
humans."
The study of chimpanzees in their native habit was a
groundbreaking event, leading to many new observations. It let to
Jane's first article published in National Geographic 1963 "My Life
Among Wild Chimpanzees." Some aspects of the study were
criticised, for example, Jane's decision to give the Chimpanzees
names rather than numbers. Also, some feared her decision to feed
the animals may have distorted their behaviour and made them
more aggressive. But, other studies had similar effects. After her
study, she was invited to participate in a phD program at Cambridge
University - an unusual occurrence for someone without a degree.
She earned a doctorate in ethology from Darwin College, the
University of Cambridge, in 1964.
In 1977, Jane set up the Jane Goodall Institute which promotes
initiatives to look after Chimpanzees and their environment. The
institute has many local networks and programs such as Roots and
Shoots which have over 10,000 groups in 100 countries.
"The least I can do is speak out for those who cannot speak for
themselves. "
- Jane Goodall
In the past few decades, Jane has been increasingly concerned
about the damage to the environment, which is especially a problem
in Congo and West Africa. Since then she has devoted her time to
campaigning and acting as an advocate for environmental charities
and concerns. She has an exhaustive travelling schedule and speaks
on average 300 times a day, encouraging people to do what they
can to create a better world.
For her humanitarian work and environmental charities she has
received numerous awards including being made a Dame of the
British Empire, on February 20th, 2004; and in 2002, she was made a

United Nations Messenger of Peace by UN secretary general, Kofi

Annan.
She married twice and had a son Hugu Eric Louis 'grub' with her
first husband Baron Hugo van Lawick. Her second husband was
Derek Bryceson, who died of cancer in 1980.