With great sadness, the Jane Goodall Institute confirmed this morning the passing of the organization’s founder, Dr. Jane Goodall, age 91 who died peacefully in her sleep while in Los Angeles, CA for her speaking tour in the United States.
Dr. Goodall’s life and work not only made an indelible mark on our understanding of chimpanzees and other species, but also of humankind and the environments we all share. She inspired curiosity, hope and compassion in countless people around the world, and paved the way for many others — particularly young people who gave her hope for the future.
In 1960 Dr. Goodall established the longest running wild chimpanzee study in Gombe National Park, Tanzania which continues to this day. She pioneered and sustained the Jane Goodall Institute’s community-centered conservation initiatives across the chimpanzee range for over four decades. Her legacy includes the creation of JGI’s international environmental and humanitarian youth program Roots & Shoots, which is actively driving change in 75 countries and counting around the world.
The Jane Goodall Institute is incredibly grateful to all our supporters, partners, and friends, especially during this difficult time. To add a personal remembrance of Dr. Goodall and continue her legacy for future generations, please visit JaneGoodall.org/RememberingJane
#ThankYouJane #RememberingJane 💚
Photo credit: Marko Zlousic
Say hello to some of the endangered species who now call our Tchimpounga sanctuary home 👋💚
🐵 JGI's Tchimpounga Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Center was first founded to provide rescue and rehabilitation to chimpanzees injured and/or orphaned due to the illegal wildlife trade. Today, Tchimpounga is home to over 150 rescued chimpanzees in addition to several other threatened species.
🐦 The Tchimpounga team is equipped to care for nearly any Central or West African species in need. This includes African Grey Parrots, among the most trafficked species in the world. By working with communities and local law enforcement, we have rescued, rehabilitated, and released over 115 African Grey Parrots back into the wild.
🦍 Chimpanzees are not the only great apes at Tchimpounga! JGI coordinated across governments and other conservation organizations to rescue ZZ, a baby gorilla found in and named for Mozambique. After receiving 24-hour, round-the-clock care from a human surrogate parent, ZZ has now regained strength and is thriving.
🫶 Pangolins are widely considered the most trafficked animal in the world, and we are determined to change that. Our Canine Detection Unit has been trained to pick up the scent of pangolin scales, stopping wildlife trafficking in real time. The Tchimpounga team then recovers pangolins from the illegal wildlife trade, cares for them, then releases them back into the wild.
Together, we are upholding Dr. Jane Goodall's belief that every species matters and has a role to play 🌍
The Jane Goodall Institute does not endorse close proximity with wildlife. This represents a sanctuary context with trained professionals.
📸: Fernando Turmo
#EndangeredSpeciesDay #Chimpanzees #AfricanGreyParrots #Gorillas #Pangolins
Meet the hybrid monkeys of Gombe National Park! 🐒
🐾🔍 JGI's Gombe Stream Research Center in Tanzania is known for the longest-running study of wild chimpanzees in the world, started by Dr. Jane Goodall in 1960. But Gombe's researchers study a variety of other wildlife, like Dr. Kate Detwiler at @fauscience who studies the hybrid offspring of red-tailed monkeys and blue monkeys.
🧬🔬 One of Dr. Detwiler's most exciting moments came from studying blue monkey DNA: "When I screened them for the mitochondrial marker for blue monkeys, every single blue monkey at Gombe had the red tail marker ... All the blue monkeys that we see today are descendants from hybridization events in the past."
🤔💭 This fascinating research prods at questions scientists and naturalists have been asking for centuries — what defines a species, and how are new species created? With Dr. Detwiler and her team hard at work, we can't wait to see what answers they learn from Gombe's hybrid monkeys.
Support continued research by becoming a Gombe Science Hero — LINK IN BIO
📸: Dr. Kate Detwiler
#GombeResearch #JaneGoodallInstitute #HybridMonkeys #Guenons #Primatology
If you follow great ape news, you may have heard of the chimpanzee "civil war" in Uganda. Our hearts go out to the research team at Ngogo, in Kibale National Park, where a split in the chimpanzee community has resulted in the deaths of many members of the central chimpanzee group. The fission and subsequent aggression between the two groups is a deadly chapter in the history of this 30-year study, which was recently described in @sciencemagazine .
This is not a new phenomenon: Dr. Jane Goodall famously observed chimpanzee warfare herself in the 1970s when the Kasekela community in Gombe, Tanzania split. JGI's filmmaker and scientific adviser Bill Wallauer reminds us of the emotional difficulty of witnessing animal warfare: "I knew many of the victims of the recent aggression from my film projects in Ngogo over the past 24 years. You cannot spend time with chimpanzees in the wild and not hold a deep emotional attachment to them. This has no doubt been a difficult time for the whole research team, and a loss to the forest as a whole. Every chimpanzee's life is precious, and as this case illustrates, we still have much to learn about their complex behavior and relationships."
Bill also shared this photo of Morton, a chimpanzee who recently fell victim to the Ngogo conflict in Kibale National Park, Uganda. "He was a beautiful and social male chimpanzee, and I loved spending time with him," said Bill. "Morton was very high-ranking within the community, but I didn't know him to be overly aggressive or mean to his subordinates. He had kind eyes and a pretty face, and he no doubt will be missed by all who knew him."
Before Dr. Jane Goodall inspired the world, she was a young girl with a dream and a mother, Margaret Myfanwe “Vanne” Goodall, who encouraged her every step of the way. 💚
Jane often said that the best advice she ever received came from her mother:
“If you really want something, and you work hard, take advantage of opportunity, and never give up.”
That belief in perseverance helped guide Jane from her childhood fascination with animals to the forests of Gombe in 1960, where Vanne stood by her side as her greatest supporter.
Today, as we face a planet under pressure, Vanne’s message feels more important than ever. Even in difficult times, Jane and her mother remind us that hope, determination, and the courage to keep going can lead to meaningful change.
🎥: Hugo Van Lawick
#JGI #JaneGoodall #Tanzania #MothersDay #Gombe #Chimpanzees
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Footage of a young blonde woman (Jane Goodall) and her mother at a field site camp in a lush tropical forest.
Meet La Vieille, a remarkable chimpanzee whose story began with loss, and became one of healing ❤️🩹
La Vieille was rescued and brought to JGI's Tchimpounga sanctuary after years of neglect. She was first orphaned, then subjected to terrible conditions in a zoo before she finally received proper care from Tchimpounga's dedicated team. Her trauma and fear ran so deep that even after coming to Tchimpounga, she did not leave her enclosure for two years.
With time and consistent care, that began to change. La Vieille slowly stepped out and gained the confidence to explore. Then something remarkable happened.
An orphaned infant chimpanzee named Likuaka arrived at Tchimpounga in critical condition. La Vieille stayed close. She comforted him, protected him, and eventually raised him as her own. She went on to serve as a surrogate mother for numerous young chimpanzees who came to Tchimpounga, up until her passing in 2016 after 24 years in the sanctuary.
Like many mothers, La Vieille’s care was not defined by biology alone. She chose to nurture, protect, and guide. Her story shows what is possible with care and time. Even after trauma, connection can return. And when it does, it can change another life.
#MothersDay #HappyMothersDay #JaneGoodallInstitute #Chimpanzees
The Jane Goodall Institute does not endorse close proximity with wildlife. This represents a sanctuary context with trained professionals.
Happy Mother’s Day to those that raise us, teach us, love us.
To the ones that carry us.
Today we celebrate mothers in all their forms, including our Mother Earth. We find her lessons in resilience, empathy, strength, and softness.
What qualities do you see in your mother figures that you see in Mother Earth?
Featuring photographs from: @daisygilardini , @suzieszterhas , @michaelnicknichols , @mywildlive , @timflachphotography , @marionpayr , @malin.hanning , @tuigalapagos , @marinacano , @leilajeffreys , @ggkenya , @sandysharkeyphotography . All of these prints are available now in our ongoing global campaign: ‘The Nature of Hope: The World Jane Goodall Inspired,’ created in partnership between Vital Impacts and the Jane Goodall Institute.
One hundred percent of the profits from Dr. Goodall’s signed prints will be donated directly to the @JaneGoodallInst . Proceeds from all other prints will support the Jane Goodall Institute’s Roots and Shoots program and @Vital.Impacts fellowships, helping to empower the next generation of people working to protect our planet.
Thank you @cansoninfinity , @paperandinkstudio , and @theprintspace 🤍 #janegoodallday #natureofhope #earthmonth #mothersday
🦅🐦⬛ "Spring is here, and life is bursting out on land and in the air," says avid birder JGI USA filmmaker and scientific adviser, Bill Wallauer. "In my backyard alone, I see dozens of gorgeous new arrivals every day, from tiny colorful warblers to stunningly beautiful Orioles and Grosbeaks. In the U.S., the Sandhill Crane is among the earliest arrivals in late February, and witnessing their migration is spectacular.
For six to eight weeks, around a million Sandhill Cranes flock to a 45-mile stretch of the Platte River in central Nebraska in what Dr. Jane Goodall considered to be one of the most phenomenal events in nature. Thanks to the amazing hospitality of our friends at @crane_trust , I was able to spend many hours on the river this year with my wife and friends, watching and documenting this awe-inspiring event."
While she was so well known for her work with chimpanzees, Jane loved the bird migration and tried to observe the cranes in Nebraska every year. In her honor, you can celebrate #WorldMigratoryBirdDay today by enjoying time in a local green space today to see and listen to some of the 200+ million birds who pass by every day. 🎶🐦
🎥: JGI/Bill Wallauer
#BirdMigration #SandhillCranes #CraneMigration #MigratoryBirds #CitizenScience
Happy 100th birthday, Sir David Attenborough! 🎉
For decades, David Attenborough has inspired generations to appreciate and protect the natural world. His passion for storytelling and conservation served as the foundation for his friendship with Dr. Jane Goodall, and some colleagues even jokingly referred to the pair as the "Tarzan and Jane" of the animal world.
Last year, in honor of Sir David's 99th birthday, Jane penned this message: "You have done more than anyone to educate people around the globe about the magic of the natural world so that more and more people are working to protect the environment and the animals, plants and trees that, together, comprise the ecosystems that support life. Forests, oceans, wetlands, prairies and all the rest. I join with all nature lovers in congratulating you on your fabulous achievements.”
Her words still ring true today 💚 Cheers to a century of animal advocacy!
📸: Mary Lewis. Photo 1 shows David Attenborough supporting Jane at a Roots & Shoots Earth Day event in Cambridge in 2017, and photo 2 shows David Attenborough, Jane Goodall, and biologist and conservationist Ian Redmond (@ianredmond4eco ) after speaking together at the Hope4Apes event at the Lyceum Theatre in 2010.
#DavidAttenborough #DavidAttenborough100 #JaneGoodall #JaneGoodallInstitute
Did you know that Ted Turner was the co-creator of Captain Planet and the Planeteers — and that Jane had the opportunity to "meet" the superhero when she accepted the 2014 Captain Planet Foundation Benefit Gala Exemplar Award?
As we reflect on Ted Turner's passing and significant impact on conservation, we are reminded of one of Captain Planet's most famous phrases: "The power is yours." Let's use the power we have to protect the natural world we share 🌎
📸: Photo 1 - John Amis from the 2014 @captainplanetfdn gala, Photo 2 - the Jane Goodall Institute
#Conservation #CaptainPlanet #TedTurner #JaneGoodall
"Flo was a wonderful mother — patient, tolerant, affectionate, and playful," says Jane as she describes one of Gombe's most famous chimpanzees, Flo, in her book of chimpanzee stories, "With Love." 🫶
🌿👑 Flo was the grand matriarch of Gombe when Jane began her studies into wild chimpanzee behavior, and she had a profound impact on Jane's understanding of strong mother-child bonds! She watched as Flo allowed her children to explore the forest, keeping a close eye out for any potential danger.
While three of her children, Faben, Figan, and Fifi, grew up to be leaders in their own right, Flo's most famous child is probably Flint. Sadly, his story is a tragic one. He was very attached to his mother, even clinging to her when he was long past childhood. When Flo passed away, he grew very depressed, and passed away soon after.
While this story always makes us sad, it is a reminder of the essential role that chimpanzee mothers play in their children's lives. Today, Flo's legacy continues through her great-great-granddaughter, Fukuma 💚
You can support continued research into Flo's descendants and other wild chimpanzees of Gombe by becoming a Gombe Science Hero today! LINK IN BIO
📸 credits: Hugo van Lawick
#GombeResearch #AnimalParents #JaneGoodall #JaneGoodallInstitute #ChimpanzeeBehavior
💭 How do you create an environment where people and nature coexist peacefully? Step 1: Ensure that communities' needs are being met! 🤝⭐️
🐵🌿 Through JGI's Tacare approach to community-led conservation, we work with local people living near chimpanzee habitats to understand the issues that put pressure on the local environment. In Vikonge Village, Tanzania, one issue revolved around land conflicts and insecure tenure — without the rights to use and protect their land, it was difficult to find work that conserved natural resources.
📑🏫 With help from @janegoodallinstitute_tanzania , Vikonge Village Executive Officer Stephen Msome secured communal Certificates of Customary Rights of Occupancy (CCROs) for key village lands. Today, Vikonge has land tenure for more than 67,000 acres of grazing areas, markets, schools, and forest reserves!
🌳🏘️ "We can now better protect chimpanzees and their habitats than ever before," Msome notes with pride. Beyond conservation, the village is earning from investments in communal pasture plots and land conflicts between neighbors have decreased. Msome envisions even greater future benefits as the village prepares to attract carbon credit investors.
The partnership has helped the village not only to rise but to inspire others to follow in their footsteps. Msome concludes, “Our land is no longer a source of conflict but a foundation for peace and progress." 🫶
📸 credit: JGI/Michael Pandisha
#JaneGoodallInstitute #Tacare #CommunityLedConservation #LandUsePlanning #ForestReserves
