Organization Spotlight — Jane Goodall Institute

Love, Care and Consciousness are built into our DNA at DrTung’s.  It’s a concept we weave into every part of our business model — from our products, to our consumers, to our team, to our planet and to all sentient beings.  There are many, many organizations working diligently to make this planet a better place.  Some of these organizations have touched our hearts in very deep ways.  To share the amazing work from a few of our favorite groups that we support through donations, we’re spotlighting one incredible organization each month throughout the year. 

The 11th organization in our series is…

Jane Goodall Institute

Making a difference for people, animals and environment.

A global community conservation organization that advances the vision and work of Dr. Jane Goodall. By protecting chimpanzees and inspiring people to conserve the natural world we all share, we improve the lives of people, animals and the environment. Everything is connected—everyone can make a difference.

How it started

July 1960, when Jane Goodall was just 26, she ventured into the little-known world of wild chimpanzees. Travelling from England to Gombe National Park in northwestern Tanzania she began her pioneering research on chimpanzee behavior.  Her research completely transformed scientific perception of the relationship between humans and animals.  

The Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) was founded in 1977 not only to continue Dr Goodall’s chimpanzee research but also to expand the work to include chimpanzee protection, conservation, and environmental education.¹ 

The Institute continues its efforts to an even broader holistic animal-human conservation approach that includes a program called Roots and Shoots, a movement of youth who are empowered to use their voice and actions to make compassionate decisions, influencing and leading change in their communities.² 

What it means

“Dr. Jane Goodall discovered that when we put local communities at the heart of conservation, we improve the lives of people, animals and the environment.  JGI advances Dr. Goodall’s holistic approach through a tapestry of nine strategies that build on each other and bring the power of community-centered conservation to life.”³ :

Conservation Science—using the latest scientific discoveries and technologies to solve some of the world’s toughest conservation challenges.

Advocacy – using the voice of the organization to speak up on the issues that matter for the long-term wellbeing of humans, animals and the planet.

Protecting Chimpanzees & Other Great Apes — protecting against disease transmission, illegal hunting and poaching, and human-wildlife conflict.

Public Awareness & Environmental Education—helping communities understand and adhere to laws that protect chimpanzees from poaching and trafficking. 

Healthy Habitats—working to develop and implement conservation actions plans for key chimpanzee habitat. 

Roots & Shoots (a global youth leadership program)—identifying and addressing problems in their communities and becoming the compassionate citizens our planet needs.

Gender, Health & Conservation—empowering young women through education and access to family planning, health care and clean water.

Sustainable Livelihoods—working with communities near chimpanzee habitat to launch alternative, sustainable livelihood projects to improve incomes and natural resources.

Research—continuing to learn about wild chimpanzee populations and leading ground-breaking research.

Everything is Connected—Everyone Can Make a Difference 

“One of the things that the Jane Goodall Institute does that I feel is really most important is to try and give people hope, to help people understand that every single day we live we can make a difference."  Dr Jane Goodall

The takeaway

The challenges to our environment continue and our planet faces many threats, from the growing loss of habitat to the constantly-unfolding danger of a changing climate.  There is much work to be done and the tasks may seem daunting but with organizations like the Jane Goodall Institute and all of us working together we can make a difference — create a brighter future for people, animals and environment.

You can read more about the Jane Goodall Institute on their site or follow them on social media.  If their work resonates with you, we encourage you to share their story with your friends and family.  There are many ways to get involved — Make A Difference here. 

As always, do what resonates with you.  One thing we can all do is to take a few moments each day to take care of ourselves and cultivate positive energy.  When you feel positive, you share that feeling with those around you — it’s contagious (in a good way).  Each of us adding positivity to ourselves and spreading it to those around us adds to the collective Love, Care and Consciousness of humankind.  Together we can make a difference to each other, to our environment and to all sentient beings. 

“The future of the planet and humanity is in our hands.”  
Dr Jane Goodall