MBOMBELA – Our planet is on the verge of losing scores of species due to deforestation, pollution, chemicals in rivers and, subsequently, climate change. However, it does not mean that all hope is lost. If managed in an educated and responsible way, we can still save it.
This was the message of Dr Jane Goodall during her visit to the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) SA Chimp Eden on Valentine’s Day. This iconic conservationist travelled to the Lowveld to lay the first brick of a new enclosure at the famous chimp sanctuary. She addressed a hall packed to the brim with admirers and fellow conservationists.
“We have launched a hands-on project to educate people in rural areas and informal settlements about the importance of conservation and sustainable living,” Goodall said. Roots and Shoots is a non-profit organisation (NPO) which partners with other NPOs and teaches people, especially children, to respect and not just tolerate our environment.
It already has a number of schools in South Africa, three of which are in Mbombela.
“Educated and sustainable humankind – that is my first hope for the world. Movements like Roots and Shoots bring that hope closer to reality. My second hope is that the world turns to alternative sources for energy. Much of the deforestation and pollution we experience, come from big oil companies which supply the market. They contribute hugely to the emission gasses around the planet. There are cleaner and more economic ways to generate power.”
Goodall’s third hope hinges on nature’s resilience. “Have you ever visited arid places and a few years later the same place was teeming with life and vegetation? Nature has the tendency to heal itself and it will keep doing that.”
Her fourth hope addresses humans and how they need to improve their attitude toward the environment. “I place my trust in the indomitable human spirit. Your very own Mandela is an example of a figure that worked tirelessly for a selfless cause and actually succeeded. We need people to do the same for the welfare of our planet.”
She paused, as if to reconsider her fifth element, and then smiled with relief. “Finally, I believe the power of social media to gather people who believe in a cause, can be of immeasurable value to conservation. It can draw people to one place with a click of a button.”
This soft-spoken British icon has visited South Africa for the opening of a new enclosure for two chimps, Nikki and Amadeus, primates with behavioural problems, as well as four females.
Dr Goodall doesn’t believe that the animals have to be put down after attacking a student in 2012, but that they should rather just be separated from the rest and kept under strict observation.
Paintings from three local artists were auctioned off to raise more funds for the new chimp enclosure. The first brick was laid by Goodall herself on Monday.
“We desperately needed to build the new enclosure. Chimpanzees cannot be euthenaised for being chimpanzees. As they get older they become more territorial and more aggressive.”
As a result, the institute started plans to erect a third camp, 20×30 metres and four and a half metres in height, to house Nikki, Amadeus and the females.
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