The world is mourning the death of Jane Goodall, the celebrated primatologist whose groundbreaking work with chimpanzees reshaped science and inspired generations. She was 91.
Goodall’s passing was announced by the Jane Goodall Institute on Wednesday in a social media post. The institute confirmed that she died of natural causes while in California, where she had been on a speaking tour.
Her name became synonymous with compassion, intellect, and conservation. From her early days in Africa, where she lived among chimpanzees and documented their behaviours, to her later decades of activism, Goodall dedicated her life to understanding and protecting the natural world.
In the 1960s, she stunned the scientific community by revealing that chimpanzees used tools and displayed individual personalities, behaviours once thought to belong only to humans. These discoveries challenged perceptions of animals and propelled her into the global spotlight through documentaries and magazine features.
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Her influence stretched far beyond research. Audiences around the globe filled auditoriums to hear her speak. Known for balancing stark truths about the climate crisis with a hopeful message for the future, Goodall often punctuated her talks with humour – sometimes imitating a chimpanzee’s whoop or joking about Tarzan choosing the wrong Jane.
Even at 90, she kept a relentless schedule, travelling up to 300 days a year from her home in Bournemouth, England, to spread her message of conservation. On the day of her death, she had been scheduled to help launch the planting of 5 000 trees in wildfire burn zones near Los Angeles, as per AP News. At EF Academy in Pasadena, where she was due to meet students and teachers, organisers instead held a moment of silence before planting the first tree in her honour.
‘There’s no better way to celebrate her legacy than with thousands of children gathered in her name,’ said event spokesperson Shawna Marino.
Tributes poured in from around the world. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called her ‘our dear Messenger of Peace,’ praising the extraordinary legacy she leaves behind.
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Picture: Bryan Bedder / Gallo Images
