We are deeply moved by the news of the passing of Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace. Dr. Jane, as her friends called her, was a world-renowned ethologist, conservationist and humanitarian. Dr. Jane leaves an incredible legacy behind. Her pioneering research on primate behavior and social life fundamentally changed our understanding of non-human animal intelligence, emotions and relations. Through her advocacy she contributed not only to conservation efforts in Africa but also carried a message of hope and action that resonated with people of all ages across the world. Dr. Jane was particularly passionate about empowering youth.
It was Dr. Jane’s passion for youth and her desire to work with young people that gave rise to the School’s partnership with the Jane Goodall Institute of Canada (JGIC) back in 2006, when the JGIC was considering relocating to Toronto. Shortly after, the JGIC found a home on campus in the Centre of Environment, as the School was called at the time. In 2008, Dr. Jane received an honorary doctorate from U of T and a tree that she planted by the Earth Science Centre serves as a physical marker of her presence on the U of T campus.
Over the last two decades, our partnership with the JGIC has created varied opportunities for our students to learn and be inspired to take action. For many, these experiences have been life-changing, from work placements that enable students to learn in practice how an environmental nonprofit operates to Roots & Shoots projects that help them become conservation leaders. Importantly, our partnership has afforded us the opportunity to welcome Dr. Jane Goodall at U of T to share her message of hope and action with our students several times, most recently this past September in a meaningful event called Hope in Action: In Conversation with Dr. Jane Goodall on the very first day of the academic term. We feel very honored and know that for many of our students, Dr. Jane’s visits have been one of their most memorable experiences!
Dr. Jane was a “force of and for nature”, as Stephen Scharper, a professor at the School of the Environment described her in a recent article in the Toronto Star. A hopeful force until her last day and one that will continue to inspire love and admiration for the natural world, and to take action to protect it for generations to come.
Christian Abizaid
Acting Director
School of the Environment
[Drawing in part on input from the JGIC, Ingrid Leman Stefanovic, Emerita Professor, and former Director of the Centre for Environment (now School of the Environment), and Stephen Scharper, Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology (UTM) and School of the Environment.]