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DR. JANE GOODALL - In the summer of 1960, a young Englishwoman arrived on the shores of Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania, East Africa. Although it was unheard of for a woman to venture into the wilds of the African forest, going to Africa meant the fulfillment of Jane Goodall’s childhood dream.Encouraged by her mother, Vanne, Goodall began what would become a lifelong fascination with animals at an early age. Throughout her childhood she read avidly about wild animals, dreaming about living like Tarzan and Dr. Doolittle and writing about the animals with whom she lived.
As a young lady, her passion grew stronger, and when a close friend invited her to Kenya in 1957, Jane readily accepted. Within a few months of her arrival she met the famed anthropologist and paleontologist, Dr. Louis Leakey. One of Leakey’s interests was to study wild chimpanzees in order to gain insight into the evolutionary past of humans. Goodall’s patience and persistent desire to understand animals prompted Leakey to choose her for this pioneering study. He believed that a mind uncluttered by academia would yield a fresh perspective. Leakey intended for the Goodall’s research to be long-term, yet critics believed she would last no longer than three weeks.In 1965, Goodall earned her PhD in Ethology from Cambridge University. Soon thereafter, she returned to Tanzania to continue research and to establish the Gombe Stream Research Centre. Her profound scientific discoveries laid the foundation for all future primate studies. One of many observations that amazed the world was that of chimpanzees making and using tools. This behavior was previously believed to separate humans from other animals. And over the years her studies have shown the many striking similarities between humans and chimpanzees.
The Jane Goodall Institute
In 1977, Goodall founded the Jane Goodall Institute for Wildlife Research, Education and Conservation to provide ongoing support for field research on wild chimpanzees. JGI-USA is a tax-exempt non-profit organization located in Silver Spring, Maryland, with offices in Austria, Canada, China, England, Germany, Holland, Italy, South Africa, Taiwan and Tanzania. Today, the mission of the Institute is to conserve primate habitat; foster positive relationships among people, the environment, and animals; and promote activities that ensure the well-being of chimpanzees and other animals, both wild and in captivity.
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Photo Credit:
Michael Neugebauer
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