Meeting Jane Goodall & The Chimpanzees

After one of the hardest hikes of my life, I stepped into a small clearing and turned to see a full-grown male chimp perched in a tree just above and behind me. He was close enough to attack if he’d wanted to. Thankfully, he didn’t want to… I grew up reading National Geographic magazine from cover to cover every month. There I learned about diverse cultures, amazing ecosystems, and drank in vivid images of wild animals. It’s also where I, like many of you, first experienced meeting Jane Goodall. The amazing Jane Goodall. It’s one of the things that shaped my attitudes toward health, the environment and our place in the world. It’s not surprising my wife Cheryl and I jumped at the chance to join a dear friend who was organizing a small group trip to Tanzania to meet Jane and the chimps she studied and has grown to love. The surprising thing was there were two spaces left and they accepted us on the trip. As the details unfolded we found out we would also have the opportunity to meet many of the good people running the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) and have the opportunity to see first hand the impact they are making in Tanzania. JGI has three main arms: Community Outreach & Tacare Roots and Shoots Chimp Research & Chimp Rescue JGI Community Outreach Most of us know Jane for her work with chimps. It’s ground breaking and opened our eyes to our relationship with the world. It’s also what helped Jane see the importance of whole ecosystems. When she first ...
Source: Conversations with Dr Greene - Category: Child Development Authors: Tags: Dr. Greene's Blog Environmental Health Top Environmental Health Source Type: blogs