Doctor Jane Goodall I Remember…

Renowned primatologist and anthropologist, Dame Jane Goodall, 84, is the world’s foremost expert on chimpanzees and an environmental activist.

- Jack Watkins

…BEING BOUGHT A TOY CHIMP AS A TODDLER. It was made to mark the first chimp born at the London Zoo, called Jubilee (right). People said it would give me nightmares, but he became my favourite toy. I took him everywhere. I still have him now, though he’s in his eighties, and rather delicate, so he doesn’t travel. …

MY MOTHER SUPPORTED MY AMBITION TO WORK WITH ANIMALS. She was the only one who didn’t laugh at my ridiculous dream of going to Africa. She said I’d have to work very hard, take advantage of all opportunities, and never give up. That’s the message I tell young people around the world, particularly in disadvantaged communities. I wish she was alive to know many people have told me that I taught them that because I did it, they could too.…

RUSTY, A BLACK MONGREL, TAUGHT ME ANIMALS HAVE PERSONALITIES AND FEELINGS.

I had other pets like guinea pigs and tortoises, and I knew they all had personalities, but Rusty was special. He was highly intelligent, and I thought of him when academics later told me that only humans have personalities, minds and emotions.