On the morning of Nov. 9, Jane Goodall addressed a crowd of NYU Shanghai students and faculty, Roots and Shoots volunteers, and Chinese government officials as the Keynote Speaker at the Youth for Environmental Sustainability Forum. The event was co-sponsored by the Shanghai branch of Roots & Shoots and NYU Shanghai. Dr. Goodall commenced her talk by recalling 1958, the year she decided to travel to Tanzania at the age of 24 to study chimpanzees. In her words, "a young girl [with] no money [and] no education ... going off into the forest" was unexpected and challenging, to say the least - but nothing deterred Goodall from pursuing her passion to serve animals and the environment. She explained that her first breakthrough came when she discovered a chimp peeling a twig to get rid of the lice in its fur. At that point, Goodall had the first opportunity to effectively prove that human beings were not the only intellectual creatures on the planet. For Goodall, this discovery was proof that there was "no sharp line dividing us from the animal kingdom." Goodall traces her interest in animals to her childhood, during which she claims to have received most of her education from nature and its magnificent creatures. “When I was young, I had a teacher who taught me that professors were wrong ... and that was my dog, Rusty,” recounted Goodall candidly. Through Roots & Shoots, Goodall believes in providing an education that “bridges the gap between the head and the heart.” Her organization works to educate children to realize the importance of the environment, as we often tend to forget that “destroying the environment, destroys humanity.” For Dr. Goodall "education [should be] about raising young people with open minds." During her talk, she clarified that Roots & Shoots acts as both a charity and an educational program. Through this organization Dr. Goodall aims to steer young people towards global environmental protection: "young people are my greatest reason for hope [and] if we lose hope there is no hope." After her speech, On Century Avenue had the honor to sit down with Dr. Jane Goodall for a brief, yet intimate conversation. The conversation is transcribed below. OCA: Dr. Goodall, your love for chimpanzees has been extensively documented … so our first question to you is fairly obvious. Why chimpanzees? Jane Goodall: Because Louis Leakey suggested them. But actually they are clearly the most fascinating because they’re the most like us. OCA: Chimpanzees, on some occasions have been identified as violent animals, especially when encountered in their natural habitat. Has there ever been an unfortunate situation whilst you were working with them? Jane Goodall: Well we had one large male, the biggest we ever had, Frodo. And for some reason he always challenged me. So he definitely wasn’t trying to kill me, he definitely wasn’t really trying to hurt me, because he could’ve done it just like that. Why he singled me out none of us know. He would charge, stamp on me, drag me, but if there was a situation where if he’d pushed I’d have gone over a cliff, he wouldn’t. So he knew… he held back. OCA: Do you think that it is possible for developing countries to develop, whilst still remaining sustainable? Jane Goodall: Well, they could! But, you know, the big problem is the grip that industry and the big corporations have. And that grip extends to some kind of partnership with governments, in so many cases, and the answer is the general public should be more and more educated and people say to me ‘but how would you fight a huge country that’s doing so much damage’ and the answer is, of course, that if people don’t buy the products, because they object, then the company will change because they will have to. But very often most people can’t afford to demand that sort of change because, to start with anyway, it will cost more. So its a real conundrum. It could be done, and we already see that in some cases, corporations are changing and sometimes its part of the pressure, its PR and sometimes it is people in the corporation who really do care. I think Paul Polman at Unilever is a wonderful example of somebody who has changed, not everything, but…a move in the right direction perhaps. OCA: On a more specific note with regards to developing in China, what challenges has your organization faced? Jane Goodall: So what I see from the outside is one of the disasters that’s happened is more and more farmers losing their land to development. And beautiful old places destroyed because they want to change them to make them more attractive to tourists, which they simply don’t. And there is so much environment being destroyed and that led to flooding and dust. OCA: Dealing with corporations and governments can be extremely insufferable. Has there ever come a point over the years when you considered giving up? Jane Goodall: No way. No, I’m much too obstinate a creature. I’m like those… You know those toys where you knock them over and they come back? That’s what I am. OCA: Lastly, as college students we often tend to get daunted by relatively smaller challenges like writing papers or studying for exams. Considering the scale of your work, how do you manage to keep your spirits up and resolution high when facing adversity? Jane Goodall: I think it depends. Well, I’m like that because I’m very passionate, and I believe that there is a way forward, and there’s lots of obstacles and problems… But I want to get there! And I want to use the gifts that I’ve had in my life. But I was lucky, I found what I really wanted to do, and I followed the dream, and I had the right influences in my life… Now I care about kids, I have grandchildren, and so I think of them, and I meet young children all the time. There they are, innocent with their shiny little eyes, how can I let them down? With the gifts I was given, communication, speaking, writing, that’s nothing to do with… I can’t be proud of them, I’m just grateful for them. Jane Goodall’s warmth and compassion was felt by everyone present at the talk yesterday. When questioned by a reporter on how she feels about the acclaim and respect she has garnered for her work worldwide, Goodall replied: “People refer to me as an anthropologist, a primatologist, an environmentalist, a conservationist, but I like to call myself a human being.” [cincopa AUIAXFc4at6z] This article was written by Alhan Fakhr. Send an email to [email protected] to get in touch. Slideshow Photo Credit: Kadallah Burrowes,Dylan Crow Cover Photo Credit: Jingyi Sun