FAQs

Jane Goodall

Below are some of our most frequently asked questions about Jane and her work. Click on a question to find the answer!

If you can't find your answer here, send your question(s) to
info@janegoodall.org.hk

What is Jane doing now?
Does Dr. Goodall still write about chimpanzees?
Will Jane write me if I write to her?
Does Jane meet with children and youth when she travels?
How was Jane able to go to Africa and study chimpanzees?
Does Dr. Goodall communicate with chimpanzees?

What is Jane doing now?

At any given moment, Jane Goodall is most likely on an airplane. She travels an incredible amount of the time, giving lectures, visiting zoos and chimpanzee sanctuaries, and meeting young people involved in her Roots & Shoots global environmental and humanitarian education program. "Dr. Jane", as many children call her, spends most of her time carrying her conservation message and vision of cooperation all around the world. She is not able to spend much time at the Gombe Stream Research Centre, site of more than 40 years of study on wild chimpanzees. The time Jane is able to spend there with the chimps is precious and invigorating.

Does Dr. Goodall still write about chimpanzees?

Dr. Goodall is always publishing new books about her life and work with the chimpanzees. Other members of Dr. Goodall's research team also publish books and articles about their work at the Gombe Stream Research Center.

Will Jane write me if I write to her?

Jane enjoys hearing from people interested in chimpanzees and in her work. She receives hundreds of letters and answers as many as she can, particularly letters from children. Those she can't find the time to answer she passes along to colleagues who respond on her behalf.

Does Jane meet with children and youth when she travels?

Jane Goodall spends her time traveling all over the world, all year long, to talk with adults and children about conservation and the ability we all have as humans to make a difference. She values the hope, creativity, and energy of children, and takes their questions and input quite seriously. Jane often spends time meeting young people involved in her Roots & Shoots global environmental and humanitarian education program to learn what they are doing for the environment, animals and humans in their community.

How was Jane able to go to Africa and study chimpanzees?

From childhood, Jane wanted to go to Africa to live among animals and write about them. Her family was not wealthy, and Jane's dream was an unconventional one for a girl at that time. But Jane's mother always told her that if she tried hard enough and believed in herself, she would find a way. In 1956, a close friend named Marie-Claud (know as 'Clo') Mange invited her to Kenya. To earn money for her fare to and from Africa, Jane quit her job, moved back home and became a waitress. That summer she "worked herself to the bone." Finally, in 1957, Jane embarked on her ocean voyage to Kenya. Once there, she met famed anthropologist and archaeologist Louis S.B. Leakey. He hired Jane as an assistant/secretary, and eventually asked if she would be interested in studying a group of wild chimpanzees in Tanzania.

Does Dr. Goodall communicate with chimpanzees?

Jane mostly observes the chimpanzees. But sometimes she and the other scientists have to communicate a message -- for example, that they are not threats. They will do this by avoiding direct eye contact with the chimpanzees and having a submissive posture (such as a crouch).