Jane Goodall was revolutionary when it came to primate behavior. She showed the world the ways in which chimpanzees were similar to humans. That was, how they behaved, their personality, emotions, and their ability to use tools.
Goodall has thus worked on two monumental conservation programs, including the Jane Goodall Institute, which urges people to take action to save the planet and resources and Roots and Shoots, a youth-led group that focuses on teaching young kids the importance of conservation.
On Thursday night’s annual Gamow lecture, there were about 9,000 people in attendance–sold out–which was the most people ever to be at a Gamow lecture. Many of the students in attendance took advantage of the once in a lifetime chance to see Jane Goodall speak. Their reaction to her was intense and powerful.
One student in attendance was Chris Linder, a senior evolutionary biology major. Linder sees Jane Goodall as one of her idols. Chris hopes to one day work in a primate conservatory and help the world in similar ways Goodall did. Linder was ecstatic upon the conclusion of the lecture.
“Goodall made me that much more excited about pursuing my degree. I can’t wait to make a difference like Jane in regards to conservation,” Linder said.
Linder also noticed that even though Goodall lived through two world wars, and saw the awful things humans can do to the world, she still had the hope to change the world and fix what is broken. Chris mentioned that this was another reason she chose to pursue conservation.
Another student in the audience was Kelsea Pellouchoud, an environmental studies and sociology senior. She hopes to use sociology and how humans interact with the world to shape public policy in regard to conserving resources. For Pellouchoud, seeing Goodall speak was an opportunity she could not pass up.
“Goodall’s lecture was inspiring and overall just amazing. It was so cool to see her views on human dynamic with conjunction to nature, because that’s exactly what I’m interested in. I just love how she is such a go-getter…nothing gets in her way. I hope to be like her one day,” she said.
Goodall’s passion helped many students continue to realize their desires and career paths. Having such an inspirational woman speak resulted in a spectacular conclusion. Students were ecstatic to hear how they could one day help the world in their own ways, just like Goodall.
Contact CUIndependent News Staff Maddie Toretto at Madison.Toretto@colorado.edu
