Straits Times 9 Jun 09;
WILDLIFE enthusiasts got to walk in the footsteps of world-renowned primate researcher and conservationist Jane Goodall, who was here last week sharing stories of her time in the wild and hope for the world's endangered species.
Dr Goodall, 75, started the world's longest-running study of animals in the wild in Gombe Stream National Park, Tanzania, in 1960.
There, the British researcher made ground-breaking findings about chimpanzee social structures, behaviour and capacity for aggression, which overturned many of the contemporary assumptions about non-human primates. For her research and conservation work, she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2004.
During a five-day visit to Singapore, which ended yesterday, Dr Goodall addressed packed auditoriums at a conservation forum, a talk at the National Institute of Education and a youth symposium, as well as attended a fund-raising gala dinner for the Jane Goodall Institute (Singapore) and a Green Generation Concert at the Botanic Gardens, among other events.
She also shared stories from her latest book, Hope For Animals And Their World: How Endangered Species Are Being Rescued From The Brink, which will be published in September.
One example she cited was New Zealand's black robin, which was brought back from the edge of extinction, going from a population of five to 250 birds in 30 years.
She also said the biggest single threat to chimpanzees and other species is habitat destruction for modern development.
But Dr Goodall was optimistic about humans' ability to protect the environment. She exhorted her listeners - a mix of fellow scientists, other adults and children - to take small, easy steps to save the earth, such as conserving food and water.
'There is so much doom and gloom (about the state of the environment). If everybody gives up, then there's no hope. If there's no hope, what's the point?
'I think my main mission is to give people hope,' Dr Goodall said.
GRACE CHUA
