Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall was born in London. He was enchanted by the world of animals as a small child: at the age of two, he made a lifelong friendship with Jubilee, a toy chimpanzee given to him by his father, “whom” he has kept – a bit shabby – to this day. At the age of four, he spent hours sitting in the henhouse waiting for the egg to emerge from the hen, at the age of ten, reading stories about Dr. Doolittle and Tarzan talking to the animals, he dreamed of going to Africa and living with the animals.
After her parents’ divorce, her mother was unable to finance her university studies, so she took a job as a secretary in a documentary film studio. He was twenty-two years old when a friend invited him to their farm in Kenya, and in the African country he met the archaeologist-anthropologist Louis Leakey. She became the scientist’s assistant and secretary, in the Olduvai rift she witnessed the hominid that lived three million years ago, the Australopithecus of finding his skull.
Leakey saw one of the keys to a better understanding of human evolution in the study of wild chimpanzees, and entrusted the task to his persistent, patient and resourceful secretary. Jane said yes, but she could only travel to the Gombe National Park in Tanganyika (now Tanzania) under her mother’s supervision, because the British authorities did not allow the young woman to live alone in the wilderness.
Goodall entered the land of Gombe on July 14, 1960 (since 2018, this day has been World Chimpanzee Day), persistently sought the company of chimpanzees, who initially did not reciprocate his interest, but rather turned away. He then watched the animals from a distance with binoculars, who got used to his presence and let him come closer and closer.
In the fall of 1960, he witnessed one of the chimpanzees cutting down branches to use them to fish termites out of a termite nest. This was one of his most important discoveries, because until then scientists had thought that humans were the only species capable of making and using tools, and he had proven the opposite with his own eyes. Leakey responded to his account by saying, “we must now redefine the concept of tool and man, or accept chimpanzees as humans.”
With his other significant observation, according to which chimpanzees hunt and eat smaller prey, he refuted the thesis that chimpanzees are primarily herbivores.
Jane Goodall in Gombe National Park.
Source: Getty Images
The young researcher revolutionized primate research by flouting scientific conventions, giving names to animals, and with the openness of an outsider. He observed that apes have different personalities, thoughts and emotions, live in close family ties, court, adopt orphans and go to war, i.e. they show much more similarities with humans than previously assumed. Animal fans can get to know the everyday life of Greybeard David, Goliath and their companions from his books.
In 1965, thanks to his mentor Leakey, he was able to obtain a doctorate in ethology in Cambridge without university studies. From 1967 to 2003, he was the director of the Gombe Natural Research Institute. In 1977, he founded the Jane Goodall Natural Research Institute, and in 1986, the Committee for the Protection and Care of Chimpanzees. Involving future generations in environmental protection, in 1991 he established the Buds and Roots network aimed at educating young people in an environmentally conscious way in Tanzania, in whose work more than 100,000 children in 93 countries of the world participate. Hungary joined the network in 2006, with the establishment of the Rügyek és Gyökerek Egyesület, which has continued its activities under the name Jane Goodall Institute since 2010.
The Hungarian one Also Jane Goodall Institute with many programs, is preparing for the festive occasion with a project: the Danube-Ipoly National Park, the XI. together with the District Self-Government and the Sas-hegy Védő Egyesület jointly inaugurate the Jane Goodall Meadow on the side of the Sas-hegy in Budapest. Jane Goodall roses are planted in the Budatetényi Rose Garden and in the Alcsútdobozi Arboretum, a in a virtual exhibition and they can get to know his life and work.
Jane Goodall has visited Hungary several times, in 2018 she inaugurated the educational trail named after her in Pesthidegkút, and most recently, in 2023, she gave a lecture at ELTE. Many of his books can also be read in Hungarian In the shadow of man (1975), Innocent killers (1987), While i live, I hope (2000), The last moment (2003) and Fruits of hope (2006). His latest work was published in Hungarian in 2022 The Book of Hope with title.
Jane Goodall is the recipient of numerous awards, UN Peace Ambassador since 2002, received the Prince of Asturias award in 2003, knighted the British Empire in 2004, so she is called Dame. In 2006, he received the French Order of Honor, and in 2021 he was awarded the Templeton Prize.
Several films have been made about her work, and the fiftieth anniversary of the beginning of her research was celebrated with a documentary shown simultaneously in 500 cinemas in the United States and Jane Goodall Live! was celebrated with a program. In 2017, Brett Morgen made a documentary about her called Jane. The work, made with the help of more than 100 hours of footage from the National Geographic archives and videos provided by the Jane Goodall Institute and the family, was awarded with 34 film awards (including the Primetime Emmy), and the researcher was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019. They are preparing for their ninetieth birthday with many events around the world, including a performance at the Beacon Theater in New York on April 1, 2024.
Source: MTVA Press Archive
