Earlier this month, Jane Goodall, Ph.D., passed away at the age of 91.

For those unfamiliar with. Goodall’s research and relevancy, the Jane Goodall Institute describes her as a “UN Messenger of Peace and world-renowned ethologist, conservationist, and humanitarian.”

Admittedly, I didn’t know much about Goodall before I wrote this article. However, after reading more into Goodall’s story, it’s honestly perplexing to me that we didn’t talk more about her before she passed away.

Goodall became renowned early in her career for her research, which allowed her to travel from her home in England to East Africa, where she had begun her research into wild chimpanzees.

For 65 years, she studied chimpanzees, and later became a beacon and force for promoting matters ranging from human rights to animal welfare and environmentalism.

In the 1960s, Goodall traveled to Tanzania and made one chimpanzee famous. When she arrived at the Gombe Stream National Park, she named the chimp David Greybeard and began to observe him and other members of his group.

Aside from befriending the chimpanzees she was studying, she found that chimps are not herbivores, but are omnivores. While that doesn’t sound particularly shocking by today’s standards and general understanding, she stuck by her research which went against the grain of scientific thought and understanding at the time.

To say the very least, that alone is an inspiring feat because of how she willingly chose to go against the rigid orthodoxy that separated humans and nature, and she was a key player that brought the two together. Her findings have helped shape many things today ranging from veganism to government protections for endangered species.

To go a step further on why Goodall’s research was significant, it was because she was a woman in the scientific community at a time when women were expected to stay at home, keep homes tidy and children in line. To understand the difference between now and then better, banks would refuse to issue credit cards to women, courts wouldn’t allow women to sit on juries and Ivy League instruction and education was more than out of the question for women.

With the significance of how Goodall’s research was striking on that fact alone, it was striking for other reasons as well.

Goodall discovered that chimpanzees use tools for their daily activities. For example, one chimp that Goodall observed would use a grass rod to assist in finding and obtaining termites for food.

To underscore why this matters, Goodall had found that chimps make the tools that they use, a behavior previously thought to be exclusive to humans.

As fascinating as this was when she discovered this, and as fascinating as it still is today, it was a remarkable finding because of how it helped close the gap in how we perceive animals. It also was the bedrock that helps explain the unexplainable to the rest of us: why she cared so deeply about her research.

By all means, Goodall’s discovery humanized chimps and has helped shape how we treat animals today.

It is because of Goodall that research centers and foundations have been so focused on animal welfare. By all means, it is not unreasonable to assume that organizations like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), The Humane League or others would not be as prominent or relevant as they are today if it was not for Goodall getting the ball rolling.

With a curriculum vitae as impressive as Goodall’s, there’s a large takeaway to be had. That being that, there’s always something more that you can be doing.

At the time when Goodall passed away, she was on a speaking tour. Before this, she had started Roots & Shoots, an organization that is designated to “[empowering] young people to affect positive change in their communities.” Beyond these, and because of her work, she had even received the Medal of Freedom from former President Joe Biden earlier this year.

When you look back at Goodall’s work, it’s a powerful story because she was a woman of passion. She didn’t let obstacles get in her way, didn’t take no for an answer, and she kept moving forward. It’s because she kept moving forward that she became a household name, even at an age where other people were sitting back and enjoying retirement.

For students like myself, even though I have different passions from that of Goodall, I want to lead a life similar to that of Goodall. Or, at a minimum, have the grit she had.

For every student, graduation is impending, and it is only a matter of how much time we have ahead of ourselves until then. After that, we focus on questions relating to life at large; like when we will buy a home, marry or retire.

What Goodall’s story provides us with is a different method of thinking: forcing us to ask questions like “What’s next?” “What can I do that matters?” Or even: “How do I make a difference today because of the grit and passion that I have, which no one can compare to?”

Michael Duke, GSB ’26, is a business administration major from Scottsdale, Arizona.