‘An extraordinary legacy’: Tributes after chimpanzee expert Jane Goodall dies aged 91

Jane Goodall, who died on Wednesday aged 91, devoted her life to the study and conservation of chimpanzees and the other great apes.

Through her pioneering new ways to study them, Goodall discovered that chimps used tools, created complex societies and could be so aggressive they could even kill one another.

This suggested that chimps and humans are likely to have common ancestors – and was ground-breaking information.

Goodall’s work made waves among her fellow researchers, and the public enthusiastically responded to her revelations.

The idea that chimps and humans were related spurred debates about what it means to be human, inspiring a rethink on animal rights. Her books were so widely read that when one of Jane’s subjects Flo died in 1972, The Sunday Times ran an obituary.

Goodall remained active until the days before her death, engaged on a speaking tour in the United States, and travelled the world widely to discuss her life and campaign to better understand the natural world.

She was recognised earlier this year with a medal of freedom by then-president Joe Biden, in addition to her damehood in the United Kingdom (UK) and other international plaudits.

Wednesday’s tributes highlighted her remarkable impact on our understanding of wildlife, and her hero status among fellow naturalists.

United Nations (UN) secretary general António Guterres, writes in a tribute that he is “deeply saddened” to hear about the passing of Jane Goodall.

In a tribute post on X, he says: “She is leaving an extraordinary legacy for humanity and our planet”

Guterres expresses his gratitude for Goodall’s lifelong commitment to environmental protection efforts and her strong support for the UN.

Back in 2014, the BBC’s Farhana Haider spoke to Goodall about her life as part of a nine-minute episode of ‘Witness History’.

Goodall spoke about how in the 1960s she made the discovery that changed our understanding of animal behaviour.

Available on BBC Sounds – the episode details how Goodall lived among wild chimpanzees in Tanzania when she observed them using sticks and grasses as tools to get food.

Goodall was already immortalised by toy companies Lego and Barbie.

In 2022, the Barbie Inspiring Women Series paid tribute to Goodall’s legacy, creating a doll of her. The doll depicts Goodall wearing khaki and binoculars.

The Barbie is paired with chimpanzee David Greybeard – one of the most important chimps that she studied, as he led her to realisation that the apes used tools that they made.

Well-known conservation and animal rights charities have paid tribute to Goodall.
Tricia Croasdell, chief executive of World Animal Protection, says Goodall had been a “force for good”. He recalls that she once said “the least I can do is speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves.” He says that she has paved the way for us all.”

Commenting on Goodall’s passing, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal’s Thomas Schultz-Jagow says that “working within what was then a male-dominated sector in the 60s and 70s, Jane’s success as a female scientist was an inspiration to generations of women who followed in her footsteps.”

The charity awarded Goodall a lifetime achievement award in 2018.

Finally, Greenpeace UK’s Will McCallum says she charmed the audience at Glastonbury this year “with her vast knowledge of our primate cousins’ lives”.

He adds: “She became a tireless advocate for the protection of wildlife and forests, inspiring millions to act.”

– BBC

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