Jane Goodall died on Wednesday at 91 after a life spent revolutionizing the study of primates and then bringing her global fame to the cause of conservation.
She spent her 20s chronicling the lives of a troop of chimpanzees at Gombe Stream Chimpanzee Reserve, in what is now Tanzania. The work earned her scientific prestige and helped people understand the connection between humans and apes.
She studied a breadth of behaviors in chimps, from mating rituals to toolmaking. She grew to know each chimpanzee personally and often drew connections between observations in the field to her personal life. In 1977, Goodall established the Jane Goodall Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to conservation and research.
Here are snapshots from her life and career.
Jane Goodall was given a stuffed toy chimpanzee, named Jubilee, for her first birthday.
Goodall’s mother, Vanne, was an author and novelist.
In 1964, Goodall married Hugo van Lawick, a Dutch wildlife photographer, in London. They divorced in 1974.
Goodall’s research subjects at the Gombe reserve in Tanzania included troops of chimpanzees. She grew to know them personally.
Goodall’s first husband, van Lawick, photographed her work in Tanzania.
She and her first husband had one son, Hugo Eric Louis Lawick, who in this picture in the Gombe reserve was 7 years old. She nicknamed him Grub.
Goodall wrote dozens of books and articles that chronicled her time and perils while working in the African rainforest.
Goodall traveled the world to speak about conservation and the environment, campaigning to protect chimpanzees.
She learned to “pant-hoot,” a loud vocalization chimpanzees used to communicate.
Goodall was an advocate for involving children in environmental efforts. Her program, Roots and Shoots, teaching young people about conservation, is active in 120 countries.
Goodall with explorers-in-residence of the National Geographic Society in 2000, and her chimpanzee companion Mr. H. The society financed her field studies in 1963.
Goodall kissing Pola, a 1-year old orphaned chimpanzee, during her visit to a zoo in Budapest in 2004.
Goodall’s work at the Jane Goodall Institute often involved rescuing and rehabilitating chimpanzees. In the picture above, Wounda, an ape rescued from the illegal bushmeat trade, is released onto a sanctuary island.
In 2017, Goodall was the lifetime leadership recipient of the DVF awards.
Goodall at the CosmoCaixa Museum of Science in Barcelona, Spain, in 2018.
A sculpture of the chimpanzee David Greybeard, one of Goodall’s subjects, after it was unveiled by the artist Lisa Roet and the Jane Goodall Institute in Melbourne, Australia, in 2020.
In 2022, Barbie released a Dr. Jane Goodall doll, part of its Barbie Inspiring Women series.
Goodall, kissed by the chef José Andrés as Katie Couric looked on, used her celebrity status to speak about environmental challenges until the very end of her life.
President Joseph R. Biden Jr. awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Goodall at the White House in January 2024.
Goodall and Mr. H the chimp at the Hotel Elysee in New York City last year.