Jane Goodall Quotes on Hope & Responsibility
Jane Goodall is a world-renowned primatologist, anthropologist, and environmental activist who is best known for her extensive research on chimpanzees in Tanzania’s Gombe Stream National Park.
Her groundbreaking work has transformed our understanding of the behavior and social structure of these fascinating primates, as well as our understanding of the interconnectedness of all living things.
As well as Goodall’s scientific contributions, she is also a passionate advocate for animal welfare and conservation, and has devoted much of her life to raising awareness about the urgent need to protect our planet’s biodiversity.
Her quotes are relevant because they offer insights into her perspectives on a wide range of issues, from the importance of conservation and environmental stewardship to the power of individual action to effect change.
Her words are inspiring and thought-provoking, and have the power to motivate us to take action to protect our planet and the incredible diversity of life it supports.
“My mission is to create a world where we can live in harmony with nature.”
Jane Goodall Quotes About Animals
“I like some animals more than some people, some people more than some animals.” Jane Goodall
“You cannot share your life with a dog, as I had done in Bournemouth, or a cat, and not know perfectly well that animals have personalities and minds and feelings.” Jane Goodall
“Chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans have been living for hundreds of thousands of years in their forest, living fantastic lives, never overpopulating, never destroying the forest. I would say that they have been in a way more successful than us as far as being in harmony with the environment.” Jane Goodall
“When you meet chimps you meet individual personalities. When a baby chimp looks at you it’s just like a human baby. We have a responsibility to them.” Jane Goodall
“I got my love of animals from the Dr. Doolittle books and my love of Africa from the Tarzan novels. I remember my mum taking me to the first Tarzan film, which starred Johnny Weissmuller, and bursting into tears. It wasn’t what I had imagined at all.” Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall Quotes
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” Jane Goodall
“The greatest danger to our future is apathy.” Jane Goodall
“What makes us human, I think, is an ability to ask questions, a consequence of our sophisticated spoken language.” Jane Goodall
“Words can be said in bitterness and anger, and often there seems to be an element of truth in the nastiness. And words don’t go away, they just echo around.” Jane Goodall
“I didn’t want to become a professor or get tenure or teach or anything. All I wanted to do was get a degree because Louis Leakey said I needed one, which was right, and once I succeeded I could get back to the field.” Jane Goodall
“I did this book ‘Harvest for Hope,’ and I learned so much about food. And one thing I learned is that we have the guts not of a carnivore, but of an herbivore. Herbivore guts are very long because they have to get the last bit of nutrition out of leaves and things.” Jane Goodall
“I think the most important thing is to keep active and to hope that your mind stays active.” Jane Goodall
“We can’t leave people in abject poverty, so we need to raise the standard of living for 80% of the world’s people, while bringing it down considerably for the 20% who are destroying our natural resources.” Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall Quotes About Hope
“Chimps are very quick to have a sudden fight or aggressive episode, but they’re equally as good at reconciliation.” Jane Goodall
“It’s been proven by quite a few studies that plants are good for our psychological development. If you green an area, the rate of crime goes down. Torture victims begin to recover when they spend time outside in a garden with flowers. So we need them, in some deep psychological sense, which I don’t suppose anybody really understands yet.” Jane Goodall
“I thought my life was mapped out. Research, living in the forest, teaching and writing. But in ’86 I went to a conference and realised the chimpanzees were disappearing. I had worldwide recognition and a gift of communication. I had to use them.” Jane Goodall
“I’m always pushing for human responsibility. Given that chimpanzees and many other animals are sentient and sapient, then we should treat them with respect.” Jane Goodall
“I think my message to the politicians who have within their power the ability to make change is, ‘Do you really, really not care about the future of your great-grandchildren? Because if we let the world continue to be destroyed the way we are now, what’s the world going to be like for your great-grandchildren?'” Jane Goodall
“From my perspective, I absolutely believe in a greater spiritual power, far greater than I am, from which I have derived strength in moments of sadness or fear. That’s what I believe, and it was very, very strong in the forest.” Jane Goodall
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