She wasn’t the first to advocate for wildlife, but few changed the fate of animals as effectively as Jane Goodall, who has passed away at the age of 91. She was a fearless trailblazer determined to advance our understanding of the world. And she undoubtedly did. Her groundbreaking work documenting chimpanzees making and using tools—which National Geographic helped fund—forever changed our understanding of primate behavior.

Goodall’s relationship with National Geographic stretches back to 1961, when the Society initially funded her research. But her journey to science and conservation icon began in 1963 with
a story she wrote for our magazine, which we’ve republished online and made free for all to read. More than 60 years later, the story of her work in the field still retains its power and interest. "Gradually," she wrote, "the animals became used to the strange, pale-skinned primate that had invaded their territory."

— Nathan Lump, Editor in Chief 

Explore decades of photographs from National Geographic’s collection of Goodall and her work.

Revisit the Gombe Stream Game Reserve with Jane Goodall as she documented her encounters with chimpanzees that would change science forever. "To know Jane was to know an extraordinary scientist, conservationist, humanitarian, educator, mentor and, perhaps most profoundly, an enduring champion for hope,” says Jill Tiefenthaler, CEO of the National Geographic Society.

Goodall’s pioneering work initially faced obstacles. People underestimated her because, as Cathy Newman writes, "she lacked scientific training. She had no degree. A lone woman in the wilds of East Africa studying chimpanzee behavior, vulnerable to violent weather, predatory animals, poisonous snakes, and malarial mosquitoes?” But Goodall was undeterred—she had documented the primates making and using tools.

Drawing from over 100 hours of never-before-seen footage tucked away in the National Geographic archives for over 50 years, director Brett Morgen tells the story of Jane, a woman whose chimpanzee research challenged the male-dominated scientific consensus of her time and revolutionized our understanding of the natural world.