Jane Goodall shares message of hope with South Florida

World-renowned ethologist and conservationist Jane Goodall has a message for the people of South Florida: “We need people who are positive. We need people who have hope.”

In an inspirational address and moderated Q&A in front of an enthusiastic, sold-out crowd of 3,400 at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center March 31, the global icon shared some essential truths that have guided her incomparable life. Early in the evening, Goodall told the crowd she believes storytelling is more effective than presenting facts in trying to convey information. And so it was that Goodall shared many anecdotes, often laced with humor, from her remarkable life.

Goodall grew up in London, in a home that had few material possessions. It never bothered her, said Goodall, because her mother was “a really positive, supportive presence” in her life.

When Goodall first joined the chimpanzees in Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania in the 1960s, it was difficult, she said.

“For four months, the chimps ran away when they saw me.”

The money was running out after six months, said Goodall, adding to the stress of the situation. During that time, her mother patiently assured her to keep at it. You’re observing, she said. You’re learning a lot through those observations, she said. Don’t give up.

“And then, in the fifth month, I had a breakthrough observation,” she said. “A chimp was using a tool.” Goodall had seen the chimpanzee turn leaves it had stripped from a branch into a tool it then used to catch termites in their mounds.

That changed Goodall’s life as well as our understanding of our relationship to the rest of the animal kingdom.     

“Jane has been a personal hero of mine, as well as a friend, and to see the incredibly powerful effect she had on this huge audience was simply fantastic,” said Mireya Mayor, director of Science Communication and Exploration in the College of Arts, Sciences & Education. Mayor was instrumental in bringing Goodall to FIU. “Her personal stories, her message of hope and her undying positivity and optimism for our power to make a better world brought the entire crowd of students, faculty, alumni and donors to our feet.”

Some key messages from Goodall’s presentation

Protecting the environment isn’t just for the land, it’s for people, too.

“We have compromised young peoples’ future. In fact, we’ve been stealing it.” In the late 1980s, Goodall met with 12 high school students in Tanzania, who shared their fear and depression at what was happening around them. JGI created Roots & Shoots in 1991 as an outgrowth of that meeting. Today, the youth empowerment organization has chapters all over the world.

If you don’t talk to people, how can you ever expect them to change?

Today the U.N. Messenger of Peace travels 300 days a year engaging others, encouraging them to get involved and do their part to protect the natural world. Like her mother told her so many years ago, Goodall told Friday night’s crowd: Don’t give up. She founded the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) in 1977, a global community-centered conservation organization that advances her work. 

“We are all human beings, we all laugh, we all cry, we all bleed, we are a family.” - @JaneGoodallInstpic.twitter.com/oQf8atRljl

— FIU (@FIU) April 1, 2023

Every single day you live on this planet, you make an impact. It’s up to you what kind of impact it will be.

“We need people who are positive. We need people who have hope.” Respect and compassion for each other, the animals and the environment is essential, Goodall says. “We all love. We all cry. We all bleed. We are family.”

The audience loved every word of her message.

The presentation began and ended with a standing ovation from the crowd, and spontaneous applause broke out several times through her remarks. Ten year old Sloane David is one of her fans.

“I attend The Greene School in Jupiter, and I did a project on Dr. Goodall in school. I read one of her books,” said the fifth grader, whose mother, Kim, made the three-hour drive so the two of them could hear Goodall speak in person. After the event, David said she hopes to join the closest Roots & Shoots chapter.

Said her mom, “I’ve loved Jane since I was a little girl, and tonight, I just loved her message of hope.” ♦