Patricia Savage started out as a freelance journalist for local and national publications. Bookmaking with kids at home and in the classroom dominated her imagination for decades. Her latest passion is distilling the lives of accomplished women into stories we want our kids to hear.
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A story about Dr. Jane Goodall whose love, patience and hard work changed the way we study animals in the wild. A story to inspire us as stewards of the natural world.
Born in 1934 in England, Jane counted her mother Vanne’s love and support among her greatest gifts. Instead of being put off by the dirty mess of worms on Jane’s bedtime pillow, Vanne was enchanted by her daughter’s budding interest in animals. Vanne was so supportive of Jane, that she was with Jane during her first four months in the field in 1960. In addition to helping her daughter, Vanne set up an informal medical clinic to be helpful to the local community.
That all came about because Jane saved her earnings as a waitress to visit friends in Africa. There she met Dr. Leaky, a world-renowned anthropologist, who opened the gate for her to work with the Gombe chimpanzees in what became Tanzania in 1961.
Leaky was looking to make connections between the apes and earliest humans. As anticipated, Jane was able to exhibit the patience and dedication necessary to get close to the animals, a feat that had not been accomplished by the men who preceded her.
It should be noted that an American businessman, Leighton Wilkie, financed the first six months of the field work. National Geographic also funded a good deal of Jane’s work initially. They sent photographer Hugo van Lawick, who not only documented Jane’s work, but married her in 1964. They had a son, Hugo Erik Louis, aka Grub, who lived with them in Africa until he was six. A children’s book, Grub the Bush Baby, created by his parents, illustrated his young life in Tanzania. At the age of six, he lived with his grandmother Vanne so he could be educated in England. Jane and Hugo both loved their work in Africa. Hugh’s work in the Serengeti meant they spent part time in Nairobi and part time in Tanzania. They eventually divorced. Grub returned to Tanzania to live as an adult.
When Jane first presented her findings to the 1962 Zoological Society of London, her observations were dismissed as anecdotal and not the result of rigorous controlled lab studies. It was difficult not to be taken seriously as a woman. Jane got her PhD in 1965 which helped increase her standing in the scientific community. National Geographic published a collection of Jane’s first observations in a book called My Friends the Wild Chimpanzees in 1969. Then in 1971, Jane wrote In the Shadow of Man, the first of 32 books written by her. Fifteen of her books are for children. Much of her early work focused on first hand observations of animals in their native habitat. Along with Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring and Diane Fossey’s Gorillas in the Mist, and others, Jane’s work drove a new fervor for conservation starting in the later part of the 20th century.
Jane visited Gombe twice a year, the last time to be a part of the celebration of the 65th year of continuous study of chimpanzees (longest ever) in July 2025. The work continues at Gombe Stream Research Center. Jane traveled the world lecturing about conservation. She started an international program called Roots & Shoots in 1991, that empowers children in over 75 countries in the fight to protect animals and their habitat.
To learn more about Jane, watch Jane, a National Geographic Society documentary. It contains footage from her first years in the field. It is delightful as it shows Jane’s evolution from young observer to seasoned conservationist. There are 26 Jane Goodall Institute offices around the world which can inspire us to continue her work. See janegoodall.org and rootsandshoots.global/ for more.