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Beyond the Jungle: How Dr. Jane Goodall Redefined Conservation
In her early days at Gombe, Goodall spent many hours sitting on a high peak with binoculars or a telescope, searching the forest below for chimpanzees © The Jane Goodall Institute
Beyond the Jungle: How Dr. Jane Goodall Redefined Conservation
RAYE MOCIOIU
We’ve all heard the stories—even after all these years, Dr. Jane Goodall's revolutionary work still inspires awe in those who hear of it. As an ethologist, conservationist, humanitarian, and crusader for the ethical treatment of animals, Dr. Goodall has long been a global force for compassion.
Dr. Goodall changed the world with her early research into the lives of wild chimpanzees. In July 1960, at the age of 26, she travelled to what is now Gombe, Tanzania, to study the animals.
At the time, little was known about chimpanzees, and less still was known about how similar they are to humans due to our shared ancestry. Indeed, they are our closest living relatives.
Primatology was a male-dominated field then, and Dr. Goodall did not have formal academic training. But passion for and knowledge of animals and nature, high energy, and grit, she had in spades.
In many ways, Dr. Goodall’s approach to her work was unorthodox, too. Dr. Goodall chose to immerse herself in her field research, seeking to experience the chimpanzees' habitat, lives, and society as a neighbour rather than a distant observer. She gained the trust of the chimpanzees and even named them—a taboo practice in the field at the time, but one that showed how Dr. Goodall viewed her subjects as individuals with their own personalities.
"It isn't only human beings who have personality, who are capable of rational thought [and] emotions like joy and sorrow," she said.
Through this close research, Dr. Goodall transformed our understanding of chimpanzees,
identifying that, like humans, they are complex individuals with emotions and bonds. Her discovery that chimpanzees make and use tools—a trait previously used to define humans—is considered one of the greatest achievements of 20th-century scholarship.
“I had been told from school onwards that the best definition of a human being was man the tool-maker—yet I had just watched a chimp tool-maker in action,” she said. “I remember that day as vividly as if it was yesterday.”
As incredible as this discovery was, it was only the start of Dr. Goodall’s influential legacy. Observing chimpanzees in the wild taught Dr. Goodall about the interconnectedness of all things— how animals, people, and the environment affect one another. As a result, she helped spark global interest in “community-centred conservation”—an approach to conservation that addresses the needs of local communities, wildlife, and ecosystems so that all can harmoniously coexist. It is an approach that Dr. Goodall, and the Institutes around the world that bear her name, have employed ever since.
A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO CONSERVATION
In 1977, Dr. Goodall founded the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI), a worldwide community-centred conservation organization that carries her mission forward. Now operating in over 30 countries, JGI empowers people to be compassionate citizens dedicated to building a more just and sustainable world.
The Jane Goodall Institute of Canada (JGI Canada) brings this work home. Across the country, the Institute supports people, particularly youth and Indigenous communities, in implementing projects that address the convergence of climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental inequity.
Drawing inspiration from Dr. Goodall’s community-centred conservation approach—and with an acknowledgement that they were the original stewards of these lands and often bear the brunt of environmental crises—JGI Canada works closely with Indigenous peoples and communities to address barriers to reconciliation and decolonization, to amplify underrepresented perspectives, and to support projects that benefit every living being.
Recently, JGI Canada’s Youth Advisory Council launched an awareness campaign on social media about Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCAs). A University of British Columbia study found that IPCAs have a 30 per cent less decline in biodiversity than areas managed by nonIndigenous groups, irrefutable evidence that Indigenous peoples are leading the way with innovative conservation efforts and inclusive climate solutions.
In Africa, JGI Canada also takes cues from local partners,
supporting communities to find conservation solutions that serve their needs, protect local habitats, and will last for generations to come. The Institute works with communities across chimpanzee ranges to help protect these endangered creatures—including through the Tchimpounga Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Centre, the largest chimpanzee sanctuary in Africa.
For almost 30 years, Tchimpounga has been home to over 200 chimpanzees orphaned, malnourished, or injured by the illegal wildlife trade and deforestation. Surrounded by 129,000 acres of dense rainforest and savannah, Tchimpounga is a safe haven for chimpanzees. What began as a sanctuary—designed to house only 60 chimpanzees— expanded with the introduction of three islands in 2013. This natural area serves as a safe space for the chimps, giving them room to roam in a secure environment, protected from outside threats. Such a sanctuary is, sadly, needed now more than ever.
At the turn of the 20th century, millions of chimpanzees lived in the wild. Today, there are as few as 172,000. Unrest and conflicts in countries where these endangered species can be found have affected human and primate populations—but bushmeat hunting, illegal wildlife trafficking, and poaching have also caused steep declines in primate populations.
Other threats affecting chimpanzees include deforestation—more and more forests are being cut and burned to create fields, which can also lead to uncontrolled bushfires. In these areas, the need to adopt agricultural practices is critical. Because of that, and knowing how essential local communities are for protecting chimpanzees, the community-centred approach advocated for by Dr. Goodall and employed by JGI Canada has never been more important.
BUILDING COMMUNITY RESILIENCE
Another challenge that Dr. Goodall—and, by extension, JGI Canada—is working to address is climate change. The climate crisis is no longer a future problem—it’s a current one. While we all feel the effects of climate change, underserved populations bear the burdens of the environmental crises more than others.
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you,” said Dr. Goodall. “What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”
This is true in Canada as it is in Africa. Every year, climate change threatens Senegal’s Kedougou region more and more. As natural disasters like erratic rainfall, floods, prolonged droughts, and soil erosion become more frequent, the “hunger season”— during which a staggering 70 per cent of the population has to reduce their food intake to survive—grows longer.
JGI Canada is working in partnership with JGI Senegal, the Réserve Naturelle Communautaire de Dindéfélo, and community members on this very challenge. Together, they are supporting women, who are disproportionately impacted by climate change, and equipping them with the resources they need to produce and sell fonio, a drought-resistant food that can help families and individuals survive this “hunger season.”
“It’s time for women to band together, take the power, and heal the earth,” Dr. Goodall said.
THE FUTURE OF CONSERVATION
Conservation is a lifelong process, and Dr. Goodall is an excellent example of that fact. Her own journey started early in her life and has continued for more than 60 years. She remains an iconic figure and innovator in the field of conservation, but her important work cannot be done alone.
As the environmental crises of today continue to mount in severity, JGI Canada continues to look to the future—and to the new generation of conservationists who will continue Dr. Goodall’s work.
This is, of course, inspired by Dr. Goodall’s own interest in youth leadership and the efforts of young people to create lasting change.
In 1991, Dr. Goodall met with a group of young people on her back porch in Tanzania. They confided in her their deep concerns about local animal welfare and conservation and the role they wanted to play in the field's future. They were eager to fix local problems, and Dr. Goodall was struck by their energy, optimism, and willingness to tackle crises they didn’t create. She invited them to co-found what became Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots, a program now working with young people in more than 70 countries to foster the informed generation of conservation leaders our world urgently needs.
Studies have shown that “younger age groups worry more about climate change, demonstrating a stronger emotional engagement with the topic than older age groups.”* Young people of all ages are eager to take action, and the Roots & Shoots program shows them that their ideas can be catalysts for powerful change, harnessing their collective engagement and giving it a platform to turn into action—another example of community-centred conservation in action.
Today, Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots is a globally recognized program empowering young people of all ages to become involved in hands-on projects of their choosing to benefit the community, animals, and the environment. In Canada, thousands of young people are actively involved in projects that impact tens of thousands of Canadians.
THE ROLE OF THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY
Even after years of leading the charge in conservation, at the age of 90, Dr. Goodall is still hard at work today—raising awareness and money to protect chimpanzees and their habitats and empowering our global community to do the same. She travels the world up to 300 days a year, writing, speaking, and inspiring hope through action, encouraging each of us to “use the gift of our life to make the world a better place” and take action on behalf of all living things and the planet we share.
Here at home, JGI Canada continues to be committed to building a better, more sustainable world with its community-centred approach to conservation and support for programs that benefit animals, people, and the environment.
We all have the power to inspire change in our communities. Whether that looks like spreading awareness within our networks, voting for change at the government level, joining forces with community changemakers, or encouraging others to do the same, the path to collective action starts with us.
Said Dr. Goodall: “Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.”
