{"id":175367,"date":"2025-10-02T15:00:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T15:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/175367\/"},"modified":"2025-10-02T15:00:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T15:00:07","slug":"david-attenborough-pays-touching-tribute-to-dear-friend-jane-goodall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/175367\/","title":{"rendered":"David Attenborough pays touching tribute to \u2018dear friend\u2019 Jane Goodall"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Sir David Attenborough <\/a>has paid tribute to long-time friend Dame<\/a>Jane Goodall<\/a> after she died aged 91 from \u201cnatural causes\u201d in California<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The Jane Goodall<\/a> Institute confirmed the passing of Dame Jane on Wednesday<\/a>, prompting widespread tributes for the renowned conservationist and the world\u2019s leading expert on chimpanzee behaviour.<\/p>\n

Sir David said: \u201cJane Goodall was the first to prove that an investigating scientist and a great ape living in the wild could become true friends, and in doing so, she came to transform our understanding of chimpanzees. She was their tireless advocate and a great champion of environmental protection.”<\/p>\n

The ethologist began pioneering research into free-living chimpanzees<\/a> in Tanzania in 1960. Her work was notable as it was then unheard of for a woman to venture into Africa’s wilds for such studies, fundamentally reshaping scientific understanding<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It comes after Oscar-winning actor and environmental campaigner Leonardo DiCaprio<\/a> has led tributes to his \u201cdear friend\u201d and personal \u201chero\u201d.<\/p>\n

He said \u201cwe all must carry the torch\u201d for Dame Jane and protect \u201cour one shared home\u201d, in a post to Instagram on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

The Titanic star shared photos of himself and Dame Jane, who was made a UN Messenger of Peace in 2002, 12 years before DiCaprio was also given the honorific title.<\/p>\n

\"Jane<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

Jane Goodall communicates with chimpanzee Nana (DDP\/AFP\/Getty)<\/p>\n

\u201cToday we have lost a true hero for the planet, an inspiration to millions, and a dear friend,\u201d DiCaprio said.<\/p>\n

\u201cJane Goodall devoted her life to protecting our planet and giving a voice to the wild animals<\/a> and the ecosystems they inhabit.<\/p>\n

\u201cHer ground-breaking research on chimpanzees in Tanzania transformed our understanding of how our closest relatives live, socialise and think \u2013 reminding us that we are deeply connected not only to chimpanzees and the other great apes, but to all life.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor decades, Jane travelled the world with tireless energy, awakening generations to the wonder of the natural world.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe spoke directly to the next generation, instilling hope, responsibility and the belief that every individual can make a difference. She inspired millions to care, to act, and to hope. She never stopped.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy deepest condolences to her family. Please join me in honouring her legacy by supporting [The Jane Goodall Institute] and other conservation<\/a> groups which she cared about.<\/p>\n

\"Canadian<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau said he was \u2018heartbroken\u2019 to hear of Dame Jane Goodall\u2019s death (Reuters)<\/p>\n

\u201cMy last message to Jane was simple: \u2018You are my hero.\u2019 Now, we all must carry the torch for her in protecting our one shared home.\u201d<\/p>\n

US comedian Ellen DeGeneres thanked Dame Jane in the caption of an Instagram post where she said the conservationist \u201cbroke barriers for women all over the world\u201d.<\/p>\n

Accompanying the comedian\u2019s message was a video of her interviewing Dame Jane, who said it was uncommon for women to be scientists when she started her career, aged 26.<\/p>\n

She also said that \u201ceveryone laughed\u201d at her dream, except for her mother who said: \u201cIf you really want this, you have to work really hard, take advantage of all opportunities, but don’t give up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Naturalist and TV presenter Chris Packham lauded the conservationist\u2019s work as \u201crevolutionary\u201d and said Dame Jane \u201cwas up against it\u201d when she began her career.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Her work] was revolutionary and she approached it in a very different way at the time,\u201d he told BBC News.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s not forget that this was the late 1950s, early Sixties. She was a woman in science<\/a>, and she was a woman in science without an undergraduate degree, so she was up against it as it was.<\/p>\n

\"Joe<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

Joe Biden presents Jane Goodall with the Presidential Medal in January (AP)<\/p>\n

\u201cShe nevertheless immersed herself in that society and that gave her the capacity to identify traits within those animals, to learn their personalities and know them as individuals.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cShe was remarkable, and it spoke of that determination which endured throughout the course of her life, because here, at the age of 91 on a speaking tour, still advocating for life on Earth in her calm, calculated, deliberate way, capturing the ears of everyone from children to politicians, to make sure that we can do everything we can to protect life on Earth in a time of crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n

Packham continued: \u201cTo have lost a hero at a time when we need all of them on the front line fighting for the future of life on Earth, it is a tragedy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Former US presidents Joe Biden, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama were among those who celebrated her life and legacy.<\/p>\n

Mr Biden said he was \u201cdeeply saddened\u201d by the news of Dame Jane\u2019s passing, while Mr Obama praised her \u201cremarkable ability\u201d to \u201cconnect with the natural wonders of our world\u201d.<\/p>\n

Mr Clinton said on Facebook the \u201cbest tribute we can pay her is to redouble our efforts to defend the environment\u201d.<\/p>\n

Also paying tribute was former Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, who said he was \u201cheartbroken\u201d to hear of Dame Jane\u2019s death, saying \u201cher compassion will live on\u201d in future conservation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":175368,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[96,2839,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-175367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-entertainment","tag-movies","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=175367"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175367\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/175368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=175367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=175367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=175367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}