Jane Goodall, the world-renowned primatologist, conservationist, and animal rights campaigner, has died aged 91.
Her institute confirmed she passed away of natural causes in California. She was staying there as part of her US speaking tour.
Goodall remained active until her final days. She spoke at a global forum in New York on 24 September. She appeared on a Wall Street Journal podcast days later. She was due to continue her tour with events in California and Washington DC this month.
Her last BBC interview late last year showed her urgency and calm presence. She warned that “the sixth great extinction is happening.” She urged tougher rules to halt deforestation, industrial farming, and fossil fuel dependence.
“If we don’t rapidly move away from fossil fuel, if we don’t put a stop to industrial farming, that’s destroying the environment and killing the soil, the future ultimately is doomed,” she said.
The Jane Goodall Institute called her a “tireless advocate for the natural world.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he was “deeply saddened.”
She is leaving an extraordinary legacy for humanity & our planet.
Tributes came from around the world. Naturalist Chris Packham said she was “revolutionary” and his “hero.” Former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was “heartbroken.” He praised her “wisdom and compassion” that will “live on in every act of conservation.”
The International Animal Welfare Protection Coalition said:
Jane was more than a conservationist, she was a beacon of compassion for all life.
New Zealand entrepreneur Emma Lewisham, who worked with Goodall, said it was “one of the most profound privileges of my life.” She credited Goodall’s message of hope and action as central to her company’s mission.
Goodall’s advocacy went beyond conservation. She attacked factory farming, calling it “amongst the worst atrocities ever perpetrated by humanity.” She opposed animal testing, especially on primates. In 2019 she said, “It is nothing but living hell,” after viewing footage of a testing lab. She backed campaigns for animal personhood. Her fearless stance set her apart in the scientific world.
Born in London in 1934, she gained prominence after her discoveries at Gombe, Tanzania in the 1960s. She showed that chimpanzees use tools, wage war, and form social bonds. These findings reshaped humanity’s view of its closest relatives.
Recognised worldwide, Goodall received a damehood in 2004. This year US President Joe Biden awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She also collected many other international awards and nearly 50 honorary degrees.
Jane Goodall’s death marks the loss of a scientist who changed how the world sees animals. She was a conservationist who never stopped travelling and speaking. She was also an activist who stood for compassion even when unpopular. Chris Packham said;
“She loved life, she was fascinated by life,” and that fascination became an “enormous motivating force” for generations who followed.
