Jane Goodall, 2007 Women of Discovery Lifetime Achievement Award

""As thy days, so shall thy strength be," (Deuteronomy 33:25)" — Jane Goodall

Scientist, environmentalist and conservation education promoter/activist

Born: 1934-01-01

Hometown: Bournemouth, UK

Education: PhD in Ethology

Achievements

Discoveries: That chimpanzees make and use tools. This discovery redefined the relationship between humans and non-humans. Dr. Goodall has radically changed the field of primatology both in terms of how chimps are studied and by observing how similar to human beings they are.

Expeditions: Olduvai Gorge, Bombe National Park, Tanzania to study wild chimpanzees; Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro crater to study hyenas and wild dogs.

Biography

Jane Goodall is the world's foremost authority on chimpanzees, having closely observed their behavior for the past quarter century in the jungles of the Gombe Game Reserve in Africa, living in the chimps' environment and gaining their confidence. Her observations and discoveries are intemationally heralded. Her research and writing have made, and are making, revolutionary inroads into scientific thinking regarding the evolution of humans. Dr. Goodall received her Ph.D. from Cambridge University in 1965. She has been the Scientific Director of the Gombe Stream Research Center since 1967. In 1984, Jane Goodall received the J. Paul Getty Wildlife Conservation Prize for "helping millions of people understand the importance of wildlife conservation to life on this planet." Her other awards and international recognitions fill pages. Her scientific articles have appeared in many issues of National Geographic, as well as multiple additional internationally known scientific journals. Dr. Goodall has also written two books, "Wild Chimpanzees" and "In The Shadow of Man." She pleads to thousands of people throughout the world on behalf of her career-long sponsor, the L.S.B. Leakey Foundation. Jane Goodall attributes her dedication and insight to her work and her mission in life to her mother, internationally known author Vanne Goodall. In 1985, Jane Goodall's twenty-five years of anthropological and conservation research was published, helping us all to better understand the relationship between all creatures. She has now devoted over thirty years to her mission. Dr. Goodall has expanded her global outreach with the founding of the Jane Goodall Institute based in Ridgefield, CT. She now teaches and encourages young people to appreciate the conversation of chimpanzees and all creatures great and small. She lectures, writes, teaches and continues her mission in many inventive ways, including the Chimpanzee Guardian Project. Biography from the Women's International Center.

Fun Facts

Favorite Item to have in the field: Paper, pencil and binoculars

Heroes: Prof. Muhammad Yunus, inventor of the conept of microcredit; Dr. Rick Asselta, Wheelchair athlete, cancer survivor and coordinator of JGI's Roots & Shoots university programs; Dr. Fred Mednick, Founder of Teachers Without Borders; and Mr. Percy Schmeiser, Canadian farmer and farmers' rights activist.