Jane Goodall: 'Every one of us makes a difference – it's up to us what kind'

British anthropologist and primatologist Jane Goodall looks on during the unveiling of her wax statue at the Musée Grevin in Paris, on 1 December, 2023. © AFP - MIGUEL MEDINA

Jane Goodall, who died on Wednesday aged 91 in California, transformed how the world sees animals – and helped redefine humanity’s place in nature. RFI's Alison Hird spoke with Goodall in 2018, when a documentary about her early years in the forest was drawing new attention to her research.

Beginning in 1960, Goodall lived for long periods in what is now Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania, watching wild chimpanzees at close range. She described how they used tools and hunted and their social behaviour, drawing into question the line people drew between humans and other animals.