The world is mourning the loss of one of the most extraordinary voices for animals and the planet. Jane Goodall, the pioneering primatologist, ethologist, and global advocate for conservation, passed away on October 1, 2025, at the age of 91. The Jane Goodall Institute confirmed that she died of natural causes while on a speaking tour in California—continuing her mission of spreading awareness for wildlife and the Earth right up until her final days.
Her passing has sparked an outpouring of tributes across the globe. Scientists, world leaders, environmental activists, and everyday people whose lives she touched all came together to honor the woman who redefined how humanity sees its place in nature.
A Journey That Changed Science Forever
In 1960, a 26-year-old Goodall traveled from England to the forests of Gombe in Tanzania. At a time when few women entered the sciences—let alone ventured into the wild—she broke barriers with her patience, courage, and compassion.
Her groundbreaking discovery that chimpanzees use tools shocked the scientific world, forever changing what it meant to be human. By naming the chimpanzees she studied instead of assigning them numbers, she revealed their personalities, emotions, and intelligence—challenging the rigid divide between humans and animals.
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