Our hearts—and those of the chimpanzees—are broken, as Jane Goodall has passed away at the age of 91, after dedicating her life to researching and learning from animals. She became the most important primatologist, ethologist, anthropologist, and activist in the world. Here’s the story of her magical and extraordinary life.
Valerie Jane Morris Goodall was born in London in 1934, the daughter of a businessman and a novelist. Although Jane could have been the stereotypical fashionable rich girl, she said, “Not me, darling,” and instead turned her life into a quest to know and protect chimpanzees, becoming a true icon in science.
Jane Goodall, the Woman who Rewrote Science and Became the Mother of Chimpanzees
It all started with “Jubilee,” a toy chimpanzee her parents gave her as a child. That was when she realized this species was largely unstudied, and her dream was born: to live in Africa, surrounded by animals and writing books. Even though the world criticized her, she never lost sight of her goal.
“I had read Tarzan and I fell in love—even though he married the wrong Jane (…) while other young girls wanted to be bridesmaids or marry a rich husband, I wanted to go to Africa and live with wild animals,” she once said.
Her love for animals was so strong that, despite not attending university due to lack of money, in 1957 she managed to move to Kenya, where she met Dr. Louis Leakey. He helped her get into Cambridge and she became the eighth person in the world to earn a PhD without an undergraduate degree.
In 1960, Jane traveled to Tanzania, where her life changed forever. She began studying chimpanzees in Gombe Stream National Park and discovered astonishing behaviors and customs, realizing humans and chimpanzees were far more alike than anyone had imagined.
“Once the chimpanzees got used to me, they didn’t run away—oh, there were wonderful days,” Jane recalled, noting that it took her four months to earn their trust.
Did you know Jane Goodall discovered that chimpanzees were capable of making tools—proving that humans weren’t the only living beings with that ability? At first, many men in the scientific community doubted her findings simply because she was a woman. But Jane never gave up, and she carved out her place in the scientific world.
Through her work, Jane changed the lives of countless chimpanzees. Thanks to her, living conditions improved for the species in several zoos; she founded the Jane Goodall Institute; worked with Francis Collins to eliminate the use of chimpanzees in medical research; and strengthened protection measures in chimpanzee reserves.
Jane Goodall not only transformed science but also left behind a legacy of compassion, perseverance, and love for life in all its forms.
