Jane Goodall Passes at 91 October 1, 2025 12:11 PMSubscribe
ABC News Obituary Jane Goodall, famed for her work with chimpanzees in Tanzania and her efforts via the Jane Goodall Institute has passed away at the age of 91 while on tour in the US. posted by drewbage1847 (99 comments total)
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The strange thing about the timing of this, I was debating about trying to sneak into a local school here in Pasadena where she was scheduled to give a talk. It was aimed in part to help aid fire rebuilding efforts and a friend was going as well.
It's amazing to think how much she did to change people's view points on animals, not just chimps. That's a hell of an impact. posted by drewbage1847 at 12:26 PM on October 1 [11 favorites]
Jane Goodall's chimp greeting is something I unironically adore. What a lovely, lovely human being she was. May her memory be a blessing, among humans and animals. posted by BlahLaLa at 12:39 PM on October 1 [15 favorites]
got to meet her when she came to my elementary school in antwerp ; ; incredible person posted by sharktopus at 12:43 PM on October 1
she was too good for this world. such a fascinating life and such passion for so many many years. we are diminished without her. posted by supermedusa at 12:44 PM on October 1 [4 favorites]
She said some wonderfully unafraid things about dying in recent years. I can't find the exact quote that stuck with me for its lovely clear-eyedness, but this is quite close:
"My next great adventure, aged 90, is going to be dying. There¡¯s either nothing or something. If there¡¯s nothing there¡¯s nothing, that¡¯s it. If there¡¯s something I can¡¯t think of a greater adventure than finding out what it is."
She served a higher purpose for humanity and the natural world right up until the end. What a compelling legacy. posted by CynicalKnight at 12:50 PM on October 1 [5 favorites]
My daughter learned about Jane Goodall when she was in second grade. She came home from school that day and announced that she wanted to be like Jane and work with animals. That started discussions about the ways in which she could work with animals: vet (no), researcher like Jane (maybe), etc. We happened to go to the Cincinnati Zoo that weekend to attend a family-friendly talk about conservation, and that was it. She was hooked. At age SEVEN, my daughter decided she was going to work in conservation, and planned her entire life around that goal.
Today she is a keeper of endangered birds at the St. Louis Zoo.
My daughter is pursuing a career in life sciences because of Goodall¡¯s influence. An amazing human being, for sure. posted by simra at 1:09 PM on October 1 [15 favorites]
One of the criticisms of Goodall¡¯s science is that her very presence altered the local reality and left her studying something a long way from natural chimpanzees in virgin jungle. She has acknowledged that, by feeding the chimps in order to keep them within observation range, she may have unwittingly increased the levels of aggression within and between troops ¨C when you have a rich resource it¡¯s worth fighting over. But Mike, a low ranking male, used the presence of the alien interlopers to good (reproductive) advantage, exploiting their trash and recycling his way to alpha-male-hood. Goodall and her team used kerosene for cooking and lighting and left the empty 5 gallon tins lying around. Mike incorporated one and occasionally two of these drums into his display rituals and scared the bejayzus out of the other males as he bounded at them through the forest batting these crashnikovs along in front of him. That's another chap who had cause to thank her. Hats off. posted by BobTheScientist at 1:09 PM on October 1 [21 favorites]
I was today years old when I found out that The Far Side comic referencing her work (and got Larson in some hot water with her institute) had a happy ending after all - Goodall understood the joke, thought it was clever, and became friends with Larson.
A Goodall-signed copy of the print was auctioned for the benefit of her institute, and she wrote the intro to The Far Side Gallery 5.
I mean, that's class! And that's understanding the nuance : the joke wasn't "Jane Goodall is a tramp". All good, Goodall. posted by revmitcz at 1:52 PM on October 1 [28 favorites]
I had tickets to see her last winter but got waylaid by illness at the last minute. I was afraid that was going to be my last chance. Very grateful for her life and accomplishments. Rest well. posted by pearlybob at 2:21 PM on October 1 [1 favorite]
She was a personal hero to many, and I know at least one amazing biologist who also followed that path in part because she was inspired by Goodall. posted by SaltySalticid at 2:48 PM on October 1 [5 favorites]
pure unadulterated quality right here. Jane Goodall got Mike (a low ranking male) laid, what a world we live in posted by Didymus at 4:12 PM on October 1 [1 favorite]
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What a bummer. I think I still have a book of hers from long, long, ago.
She did so much amazing work. I'd be afraid to hang with chimps, (Let's not even talk about Gorilla friends, or Grizzly, (OK pretty any bear) friends.
Bust imagine who was able to communicate with Chimpanzees!
Patrick McDonnell's (who draws the Mutts strip) Me...Jane is worth a look. posted by brujita at 5:53 PM on October 1
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An amazing woman. I'm happy for her that she died on tour following her life's work. A good death that I could wish for us all. posted by BlueHorse at 6:02 PM on October 1 [3 favorites]
when my kids were little, we played music in our house all the time, and if you have little kids, at some point that means Raffi. my kids loved one of the songs in particular, which has been playing in my head all day.
It's a lovely little song and was how we introduced our kids to Goodall's life and work. posted by martin q blank at 7:47 PM on October 1 [2 favorites]
Wow, best comments in an obituary thread I¡¯ve ever seen!
. posted by jamjam at 8:48 PM on October 1 [1 favorite]
I heard Jane Goodall speak in the early 2000s when she did the promotional tour for 'Reason for Hope: A Spiritual Journey'. She had such a remarkable life. We are all better off because of her life and work. posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 5:24 AM on October 2
I loved that very shortly before her death she was petting dogs in the park with the Dogist for his Instagram channel. What a way to go, being that capable right up to the end. She was truly an extraordinary person. posted by kitten kaboodle at 11:31 AM on October 2 [1 favorite]
¡°Why?¡± asked Larry, in his practical way. "Sergeant," admonished the Lieutenant, "you mustn't use such language to your men." "Yes," accorded Shorty; "we'll git some rations from camp by this evenin'. Cap will look out for that. Meanwhile, I'll take out two or three o' the boys on a scout into the country, to see if we can't pick up something to eat." Marvor, however, didn't seem satisfied. "The masters always speak truth," he said. "Is this what you tell me?" MRS. B.: Why are they let, then? My song is short. I am near the dead. So Albert's letter remained unanswered¡ªCaro felt that Reuben was unjust. She had grown very critical of him lately, and a smarting dislike coloured her [Pg 337]judgments. After all, it was he who had driven everybody to whatever it was that had disgraced him. He was to blame for Robert's theft, for Albert's treachery, for Richard's base dependence on the Bardons, for George's death, for Benjamin's disappearance, for Tilly's marriage, for Rose's elopement¡ªit was a heavy load, but Caro put the whole of it on Reuben's shoulders, and added, moreover, the tragedy of her own warped life. He was a tyrant, who sucked his children's blood, and cursed them when they succeeded in breaking free. "Tell my lord," said Calverley, "I will attend him instantly." HoME²Ô¾®¿Õ·¬ºÅѸÀ×Á´½Ó
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A person who was truly the best of humanity.
posted by Kitteh at 12:12 PM on October 1 [24 favorites]