Founded in 1977 by Jane Goodall, the Jane Goodall Institute is headquartered in Vienna, Virginia. It is a global organisation that seeks to conserve the environment and its wildlife. The Institution employs a holistic approach by targeting the multiple stakeholders involved in the conservation of Chimpanzees:

Chimpanzees. Forests. Community.

 

Why the community? 

The Jane Goodall Institution recognises the interdependent relationship between local communities and their local environment. Because the actions of local communities can produce a direct impact on the environment, it is necessary for the community members to become the custodians of conservation initiatives to ensure a sustainable future. As such, the Institution aims to increase the ability, responsibility and participation of the community in the sustainable management of the environment through equipping them with appropriate skills, knowledge, and tools.

When asked to weigh the importance of putting pressure on the governments or empowering local communities in, Goodall emphasised on the importance of a mandate from the community.

“All these climate conferences so far haven’t led to much political will at high levels. Even if one politician is pretty tough and makes strong emission capping regulations, if there is an election and he is gone somebody else can overturn them. And the big corporations, the vested interest groups, are so powerful and their links with governments are so strong that one gets a little jaded.” – Goodall’s interview with Nicola Davis from the Guardian (May 3, 2015)