'Messenger of Peace': Jane Goodall, trailblazing primatologist, and conservationist, dies at 91

Jane Goodall, the British primatologist who transformed our understanding of chimpanzees and went on to become one of the world’s most powerful advocates for wildlife, has died at 91. Her institute on Wednesday (Oct 1) said she passed away peacefully in her sleep while on a speaking tour in Los Angeles. In her final public appearance, dressed in her trademark green, she delighted an audience by mimicking a chimpanzee’s call. “That’s ‘good morning’ in chimpanzee,” she said. It was the mix of science, humour, and warmth that defined her life’s work.

Tributes pour in

Tributes came swiftly. UN Secretary-General António Guterres called her “our dear Messenger of Peace” who left “an extraordinary legacy for humanity and our planet.” Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan praised her research at Gombe National Park, saying it had “placed our country at the heart of global conservation.” Actress and activist Jane Fonda wrote, “The best way we can honour her life is to treat the earth and all its beings like our family.”

Who was Jane Goodall?

Born in London in 1934, Goodall developed a fascination with animals as a child, inspired in part by a stuffed chimpanzee gifted by her father. In 1957, she travelled to Kenya and soon began working for famed anthropologist Louis Leakey. He sent her to study wild chimpanzees in Tanzania, where she made discoveries that shook science. She proved chimps could fashion and use tools, once thought to be a uniquely human trait. She also documented their darker side — infanticide, territorial battles, and violence — revealing a complexity that mirrored our own species.

Goodall went on to earn a PhD at Cambridge without first completing a degree, a rare feat - she was only the eighth person to achieve this. In 1977, she founded the Jane Goodall Institute to promote research and conservation, followed by the Roots & Shoots youth program in 1991, now active in more than 60 countries.

Her work shifted in the 1980s from research to advocacy after she learned of the threats facing chimpanzees: habitat loss, hunting, and exploitation in laboratories. For the rest of her life, she campaigned tirelessly, speaking about conservation and climate change.

Honours and awards

Goodall was honoured worldwide, from Britain’s title of Dame to the US Presidential Medal of Freedom. She was immortalised as both a Lego and Barbie figure, and was even referenced in a Gary Larson cartoon about chimps.

Her message was simple but urgent: every person has the power to make a difference. “Each individual has a role to play,” she once said. “Every one of us makes some impact on the planet every single day, and we can choose what sort of impact we make.”