Jane Goodall is a hero of mine. She was a woman doing a job not many women did. Wow. In a field where few women gained prominence. Wow. And she refused to let “the right way to do things” get in the way of what she knew in her heart: animals are individuals, sentient beings.
Do you really get what a big WOW that is, especially considering the era she was in while doing it, how against the flow her approach was? Jane Goodall danced to a drum only she could hear, counter to the entire culture and training of science at the time (I am in awe) and in so doing has had a profound impact on how we see and understand both animals and ourselves.
Okay, so my first point is, Jane Goodall rocks.
My second point is…well, what SHE said:
There you have it from one of the foremost pioneers in thinking about animals differently, showing that animals are not so very different from us, one of the earliest and strongest influences on our current view of animals as more than machines, beings who deserve to be treated with respect and care.
Is there a Nobel Prize for raising the consciousness of humanity to a higher degree of compassion? Because if there is, I nominate Jane Goodall.