Citation for Dr Jane Goodall DBE
Wednesday 20 August 2014 at 3:00pm (in absentia)
Officiator:Mr Terry Evans Pro Chancellor
Award recipient:Dr Jane Goodall DBE
Award being conferred:Honorary Doctor of the University (DUniv)
Citation delivered by:Professor David Lloyd BSc(Hons), PhD, CChem, FRSC
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Chancellor, the University of South Australia awards the Honorary Degree of Doctor of the University to a person of eminence who has made a distinguished contribution to public service, or a field of academic endeavour or artistic pursuit. It is my pleasure to confer Dr Jane Goodall DBE with the honorary degree of Doctor of the University, in recognition of her distinguished service to the community.
Dr Jane Goodall DBE, is a world-renowned primatologist, ethologist, anthropologist, humanitarian, conservationist and UN Messenger of Peace.
In July 1960, Dr Goodall began her landmark study of chimpanzee behaviour in what is now Tanzania. Her work at Gombe Stream would become the foundation of future primatological research and redefine the relationship between humans and animals.
Within a few months of her arrival in Tanzania, Dr Goodall witnessed one of her most important discoveries – she observed a chimpanzee strip leaves off twigs to fashion tools for fishing termites from a nest. Until then scientists thought humans were the only species to make and use tools, but here was evidence to the contrary. Also in her first year at Gombe, Dr Goodall observed chimps hunting and eating bushpigs and other animals, disproving theories that chimpanzees were primarily vegetarians and fruit eaters who only occasionally supplemented their diet with insects and small rodents.
In 1977, Dr Goodall founded the Jane Goodall Institute, which continues the Gombe research and is a global leader in the effort to protect chimpanzees and their habitats. The Institute is widely recognised for innovative, community-centered conservation and development programs in Africa and now has offices in 26 countries around the world.
Today, Dr Goodall’s work revolves around inspiring action on behalf of endangered species, particularly chimpanzees, and encouraging people to do their part to make the world a better place for people, animals, and the environment.
Among Dr Goodall’s many honours - which include the Medal of Tanzania, Japan’s prestigious Kyoto Prize and the Benjamin Franklin Medal in Life Science - in April 2002, the then Secretary-General of the UN Kofi Annan named Dr Goodall a United Nations Messenger of Peace. Messengers help mobilize the public to become involved in work that makes the world a better place. In 2004, in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace, Prince Charles invested Dr Goodall as a Dame of the British Empire. In 2006, Dr Goodall received France’s highest recognition, the French Legion of Honor, presented by Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin in Paris.
Dr Goodall has received honorary doctorates from numerous universities, including Liverpool University; Rutgers, Syracuse University; the University of Toronto, the American University of Paris and Taiwan’s National Tsing Hua University.
Dr Goodall’s list of publications is extensive and she has been the subject of numerous television documentaries and is featured in the large-screen format film Jane Goodall’s Wild Chimpanzees (2002) and the documentary film about her life.
Dr Goodall has not only led the charge in chimpanzee protection, but she pioneered a shift in the way we think about animals when she first began her primate research in the 1960s. She has worked tirelessly throughout her career to foster a greater understanding of the human-animal relationship and of the need to protect endangered habitats and species. Dr Goodall now spends most of her time travelling the world (an average of 300 days per year) spreading awareness about the plight of animals with the firm belief that education is the key to inspiring change.
Dr Goodall founded Roots & Shoots with a group of Tanzanian students in 1991. Today, Roots & Shoots – a global environmental and humanitarian youth program for young people from preschool through to university age - connects nearly 150,000 members in more than 120 countries who take action to make the world a better place for people, animals and the environment.
The Chairman of The National Geographic Society, Gilbert Grosvenor, once stated, “Jane Goodall’s trail-blazing path for other women primatologists is arguably her greatest legacy. During the last third of the 20th century, Dian Fossey, Birute Galdikas, Cheryl Knott, Penny Patterson, and many more women have followed her. Indeed, women now dominate long-term primate behavioural studies worldwide.”
Chancellor, on behalf of the University of South Australia, I am pleased to present DrJaneGoodall DBE for the honorary degree of Doctor of the University, in recognition of her distinguished service to the community.