Renowned conservationist Jane Goodall passed away last week. To celebrate her life and her extraordinary contributions, here are reccos to delve deeper into her magnanimous mind and kind spirit
Dr Jane Goodall with her trusted monkey mascot, Mr H
Read
In the Shadow of Man
Jane Goodall’s most groundbreaking discovery was her study of the behaviour of primates. She became one of the earliest experts of chimpanzees, having stayed with them at Tanzania’s Gombe Stream National Park. Her book is a collection of her field notes written in the personal style of a memoir.
Jane Goodall in the company of chimpanzees in Gombe, Tanzania. PICS COURTESY/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ON YOUTUBE
We learn about her first observations, the names she gave the chimpanzees, instead of assigning them numbers, her close study of their individual traits, her discovery of their tool-making capabilities, and the difficulties she faced at the reserve. It was instrumental in correcting several scientific assumptions and conclusions.
Available: Leading bookstores & e-stores.
Listen
The Jane Goodall Hopecast
Dr Goodall is an advocate of hope, among other things. In the podcast, she is joined by several guests who have worked in the area of wildlife conservation, or have contributed to environment consciousness. Some of them include Emma Lewisham, CEO of a climate positive beauty line; author Margaret Atwood, who uses her voice to raise awareness about the environment; Adam McKay, director of Don’t Look Up (2021), a satire on the state of the world; Dr Evan Antin, wildlife veterinarian; and several members of the Jane Goodall Institute. They speak about their new projects and the ways in which one can build a more compassionate world.
Log on to: janegoodall.org, Spotify
Watch
Jane Goodall: An Inside Look (2024)
A young Dr Goodall
This documentary, directed by Brett Morgen, follows Goodall’s journey of becoming a primatologist. It begins with her as a 26-year-old on a mission at Gombe in 1960, where she would eventually establish her 65-year-long study of chimpanzees.
Observes a group of chimpanzees
Sent by anthropologist and palaeontologist Dr Louis Leakey, she was among the earliest to study chimpanzees. Leakey believed that such research would help us understand the behaviour of our stone-age ancestors.
A letter written by Goodall to her family, while in Tanzania
The audience witnesses an intimate view of her life spent in the wilderness. We also get a peek into her process of documentation (through the pages of her diary and the letters she sent home) as well as her gradual revelations at the reserve.
Log on to: National Geographic on YouTube
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