Jane Goodall Institute
Inspiring hope through action.
Photo: Courtesy.
I heard about Jane Goodall for the first time in one of the most inspiring episodes of The Artipoppe Podcast, an interview series hosting game changers and inspirational thinkers in the field of health, wellness, social justice and politics.
In 1960, Jane traveled from England to what is now Tanzania and ventured into the little-now world of chimpanzees showing the world not only the urgent need to protect them from extinction but the importance of species conservation and the needs of local people and the environment. Considered the world's foremost expert on this species, the primatologist and anthropologist spent sixty years studying their social and family interactions. Today she travels the world, making people aware of the threats facing chimpanzees and environmental crises, and inspiring action on behalf of all living things and the planet we share.
We talked to Galitt Kenan, director at the Jane Goodall Institute in France about their ethos as a global non-profit wildlife and environment conservation organization and their mission to inspire action.
Georgina: Can you tell us about your role at the Jane Goodall Institute?
Galitt: I have had the chance to lead the Jane Goodall Institute France for five years now. It is a huge chance because she is an inspiring woman. Working with and for her encourages the whole team to excel. We are a small team of about ten people in France and about seven hundred in total. A very close-knit team, attentive to each other. Jane says we are “a little crazy, we laugh a lot, but terribly effective”… A nice compliment! We work both in France and in Africa. Some of us are focused on our role with young people to encourage them to act for a better world and support them in their actions (with our Roots & Shoots program). And others are focused on scientific research, communication, and meaningful partnerships with associations and companies that share our values.
We are proud of our actions on the ground. Whether it is to help wildlife (mainly chimpanzees) in sanctuaries in Africa or scientific research. But also our actions to restore forests for soil regeneration and agroecology. And our impact on local populations. We act locally, in twelve African countries by offering aid for access to water, education, health, women empowerment, and economic and social development. A comprehensive, holistic approach because everything is linked in life: people, other animals, and our shared environment. So we must also act globally to have strong impacts in the long term.
Georgina: How do you inspire hope through action in this community?
Galitt: To protect you must love and to love you have to know. It all starts with knowing. To know what the situation is and that we are in a crisis of life. We are talking about the sixth extinction of species (one million species have already disappeared). But that window of time still exists to act. It is short and that’s why we must act now. Hope is not synonymous with apathy. On the contrary, true hope requires action and commitment. This is what makes it possible to fight against apathy or eco-anxiety. We live in such a complicated period (geopolitically and climatically) because hope is contagious and actions bring results that inspire others! It's a virtuous circle! Each of us must therefore act now. We can think individually before each purchase if it’s ethical (not tested on animals, produced without involving child labor, etc.), but it’s the big companies and the public authorities who can and must act. We cannot continue to act as if we live in a world of infinite resources.
Photo: Courtesy.
Georgina: Jane Goodall's early research on chimpanzees helped us better understand our species. What can you tell us about the art of living with this species?
Galitt: We share 98.6% of our DNA with chimpanzees who are thus our closest cousins. In the sixties, Jane made major scientific and etiological advances, but beyond that, she pioneered an avant-garde approach to animal behavior. Her discoveries through her fieldwork showed that many behaviors —once considered uniquely human— may have been inherited from common ancestors we shared with chimpanzees millions of years ago.
”Chimpanzees show compassion. They kiss and comfort each other when they are in mourning. The bonds between mothers and their children are very strong, as well as between brothers and sisters and they can also go to war, this is not the prerogative of humans! The more we learn about these related beings, the more we understand what it means to be human.”
It is by observing them that we have been able to make significant advances in medicine, for example. It is also by observing them that we can have, on the ground, a sentinel role for any viruses that could appear. Their art of living has taught us over time and continues to teach us so many things, about them and about us.
Georgina: How are the lives of people, animals and the environment linked?
Galitt: Everything is linked in life. People, animals and our shared environment. We form a unique ecosystem and like in any ecosystem, for it to be viable there must be intense and quality relationships in their relationships. Respectful, harmonious and balanced relationships. Each species has its role to play. The living world is like a tapestry, in which each stitch is held in place by what surrounds it. A species that disappears is a hole in this tapestry of life and each new hole weakens the ecosystem. There are more and more places in the world where the tapestry is so damaged that the ecosystem is on the verge of collapse. This is why there is an urgent need to repair. This is what we are doing in France and in Africa. Local populations are at the heart of our projects as they are the ones who determine where, when and how to act. They decide how best to work for them while preserving their natural heritage (animal and floral). They know which endemic species to use, how to ensure the long-term success of the project and who decides on priority objectives to stop deforestation and take action. It would be too easy (and so arrogant) to think that we arrive with ready-made solutions to apply. This is why we work with more than 95% of local collaborators.
Georgina: One of Dr. Jane Goodall's many accomplishments is reminding modern Western science that we are part of nature, not separate from it. How can we celebrate and protect the connection we have with other species and nature in our daily lives?
Galitt: Oh yes, Jane is a pionnier is so many ways, scientifically, in ethology, in so many domains…. You are touching on such an important point! Human life is inextricably linked to the natural world. Our food, the air we breathe, the clothes we wear… it all depends on it! However, to meet our needs, ecosystems must be healthy. We are part of nature and the animal kingdom. It is important to remember this because we tend to forget it! This link can be intellectualized, but sometimes we just need to live it, to feel it. This often begins with learning and relearning to be silent in order to listen better. To observe better and to feel. It is also an opportunity to leave our frenetic pace, to slow down. It's taking the time to educate ourselves. To better know the plant and animal species that surround us. Look at the references in books, songs, and films: our vocabulary for talking about plants and animal species has become so impoverished. It follows our level of knowledge and it's up to us to change all that!
Afterward, of course, there are many other concrete ways to celebrate and protect this connection. Having a diet with little or no meat, checking that any animals have been tested to create the objects we use, adopting an animal from a shelter rather than buying one, fighting against industrial farms… There are so many ways to act!
Georgina: Is the art of living linked to the art of giving?
Galitt: How to define the art of living? Not an easy question! I think it's a way of being, of thinking, of acting… A way of being with oneself and with others. In any case, it can only be a question of exchange, respect, and harmony. So yes, it seems to me that the art of living is linked to the art of giving. Not only materially, of course. Giving hope, as Jane and the Jane Goodall Institute is doing, is just as important.
Georgina: Any current or upcoming initiatives at the institute that you feel excited about?
Galitt: There are so many projects I would like to talk about! How we collect orphaned or injured chimpanzees in our sanctuaries, how we act to change laws and regulations, how the young people in our Roots & Shoots program act day after day for a better world… They are all so inspiring! The young researchers who won our prize this year, and the six finalists of our eloquence contest for Sustainable Peace are so impressive to name but a few! But there are two projects that I would like to share with you: one is in Tanzania and the other is in Burundi.
As you know, forests play a major role on earth, not only hosting 80% of the world's biodiversity but also performing a key function in storing CO2. Their deterioration and destruction are therefore a key issue for all. Africa loses more than 10 million acres of forest each year, double the global rate of deforestation. The degradation and fragmentation or even the disappearance of these forests are vital threats for many endangered species, including chimpanzees. African great apes could lose 90% of their habitat by 2050.
“Last year, thanks to the young people in our Roots & Shoots program, and the support of the Maisons du Monde Foundation, we succeeded in securing and protecting 410 hectares of plots of land, planting 1 million trees, within remaining fragmented landscapes in the coastal forests of Tanzania. By involving and raising awareness of more than 4,000 young people (especially women), we act for people, other animals, and our shared environment.”
The main goal is to support local communities by enabling the forest to serve as a viable source of alternative income. We aim to benefit the chimpanzees and the diverse wildlife species by limiting the fragmentation of their habitats. Our efforts involve the restoration of the soil through reforestation in the most severely degraded areas with help from our partners, DocuSign and the Akuo Foundation. These projects exemplify the type of initiatives we have been actively undertaking in the African continent for over 45 years. And all of this thank’s to the amazing teams on the ground that do colossal work, with passion, determination and impact. They are my heroes….with Jane of course!
Photo: Courtesy.