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Jane Goodall, the British primatologist whose groundbreaking work with chimpanzees transformed science and inspired generations to care for the planet, has died at 91.
The Jane Goodall Institute said she passed away peacefully in her sleep Wednesday morning in Los Angeles, where she had been on a speaking tour.
Goodall was only 26 when she first entered the forests of Tanzania with a notebook and binoculars, beginning a lifetime of discoveries that rewrote what we know about primates, and ourselves. She revealed that chimpanzees make and use tools, hunt for meat, and display distinct personalities. By giving the animals names instead of numbers, she humanized them to the world.
“Her discoveries revolutionized science,” the institute said in its statement, praising her as a tireless advocate for nature who never stopped working to protect it.
Tributes poured in from around the globe. Former U.S. President Joe Biden said Goodall’s “activism, vision, and message of hope mobilized a global movement.” Barack Obama called her “a remarkable ability to inspire us to connect with the natural wonders of our world.” Actor Leonardo DiCaprio described her as his “hero,” adding, “She never stopped. Now, we all must carry the torch.”
Greenpeace called her “one of the true conservation giants of our time,” while the Duke and Duchess of Sussex remembered her as “a visionary humanitarian, scientist, and friend to the planet.”
Born in London in 1934, Goodall grew up dreaming of Africa after reading Tarzan and Dr. Dolittle. In 1957, she saved up for a trip to Kenya and met renowned anthropologist Louis Leakey, who soon sent her to study chimpanzees in what would become Gombe Stream National Park. Her pioneering research opened doors for women in science, paving the way for others like Dian Fossey.
Over the decades, Goodall became more than a scientist. She was a global advocate for conservation, climate action, and youth education, founding the Jane Goodall Institute in 1977 and the Roots & Shoots program for young environmental leaders. She wrote more than 30 books, appeared in countless documentaries, and even made a cameo in The Simpsons.
Her honors were just as long: a damehood in 2003, a U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom earlier this year, and honorary degrees from leading universities worldwide. She also earned a PhD at Cambridge without first holding a bachelor’s degree, a rarity in academia.
Even into her 90s, she toured relentlessly to speak about wildlife, climate, and hope. “It never ceases to amaze me that there’s this person who travels around and does all these things,” she once said. “And it’s me. It doesn’t seem like me at all.”
Goodall is survived not only by her family, but also by the generations she inspired, scientists, activists, and ordinary people moved to care a little more for the planet.
*Source: Sky News
