[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 104 (Wednesday, July 14, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5858-S5859]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS
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SENATE RESOLUTION 581--HONORING THE EDUCATIONAL AND SCIENTIFIC
SIGNIFICANCE OF DR. JANE GOODALL ON THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE
BEGINNING OF HER WORK IN WHAT IS TODAY GOMBE STREAM NATIONAL PARK IN
TANZANIA
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico submitted the following resolution; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:
S. Res. 581
Whereas on July 14, 1960, Dr. Jane Goodall arrived at Gombe
Stream Chimpanzee Reserve in what is today Tanzania;
Whereas Dr. Goodall's research led to numerous
groundbreaking discoveries including the creation and use of
tools by chimpanzees;
Whereas these and other behavioral observations of
chimpanzees forever changed human understanding of the
differences between humans and other animal species;
Whereas between 1968 and 1986, Dr. Goodall published a
collection of articles and books that remain the foundational
scientific works on chimpanzee and wildlife studies;
Whereas her book, The Chimpanzees of Gombe: Patterns of
Behavior published by Harvard University Press, details the
range of behaviors that make up the essential corpus of
chimpanzee natural history and remains today a critical
reference for researchers in the field;
Whereas Dr. Goodall's writings not only formed the bedrock
of the descriptive analytical study of chimpanzees, they also
altered the paradigm of the study of culture in chimpanzees
and other animals, especially species with complex social
behaviors;
Whereas in support of the research she began, and to
advance her vision, Dr. Goodall established the Gombe Stream
Research Center in 1965 and the Jane Goodall Institute in
1977;
Whereas researchers in many other institutions continue to
carry out pathbreaking analyses related to chimpanzee
behavior based on Dr. Goodall's original scientific work;
Whereas scientists continue to make new discoveries in the
field of chimpanzee and wildlife studies today;
Whereas since 1986, Dr. Goodall has advocated for the
conservation of chimpanzees and other species, for the
protection of the natural world, for the care of chimpanzees
and other animals in captivity, and for world peace;
Whereas Dr. Goodall travels the world approximately 300
days a year, delivering dozens of lectures and engaging with
youth of all ages;
Whereas Dr. Goodall has been a leader in mobilizing
community involvement in conservation and continues to
practice and promote conservation efforts based on the
important link between human welfare and environmental
stewardship;
Whereas Dr. Goodall has received the highest honors in her
field;
Whereas in 2008, she was awarded the Leakey Prize, the
nation's most prestigious award in human evolutionary
science;
Whereas the Leakey Prize has only been given 7 times in the
past 4 decades;
Whereas in 2007, she received the Harvard Museum of Natural
History's Roger Tory Peterson Medal, and in 1989, she
received the Anthropologist of the Year Award;
Whereas in 1995, she received the National Geographic
Society's Hubbard Medal ``for her extraordinary 35-year study
of wild chimpanzees and for tirelessly defending the natural
world we share'';
Whereas Dr. Goodall's numerous honors include the Medal of
Tanzania, Japan's prestigious Kyoto Prize, the Benjamin
Franklin Medal in Life Science, the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's 60th
Anniversary Medal, the Gandhi-King Award for Nonviolence, the
Albert Schweitzer Award of the Animal Welfare Institute, the
Encyclopedia Britannica Award for Excellence on the
Dissemination of Learning for the Benefit of Mankind, and the
French Legion of Honor, which was presented to her in Paris
in 2004 by Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin;
Whereas in April 2002, United Nations Secretary-General
Kofi Annan named Dr. Goodall a United Nations Messenger of
Peace;
Whereas such Messengers help mobilize the public to become
involved in work that makes the world a better place, serving
as advocates in such areas as poverty eradication, human
rights, peace and conflict resolution, HIV/AIDS, community
development, and conservation;
Whereas upon becoming the new United Nations Secretary-
General, Ban Ki-moon continued her appointment;
Whereas in 2004, in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace, Prince
Charles invested Dr. Goodall as a Dame of the British Empire,
the female equivalent of knighthood;
Whereas during the last half of the 20th century, she
blazed a trail for and inspired other women primatologists,
such that women now dominate long-term primate behavioral
studies worldwide;
Whereas Dr. Goodall has been a role model for youth of all
ages, inspiring boys and girls alike to take action for
people, animals, and the environment; and
Whereas through her Jane Goodall Institute, she established
the Roots & Shoots global youth program, which now has
members in more than 120 countries: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the United States Senate recognizes--
(1) the 50th anniversary of the beginning of Dr. Jane
Goodall's work in what is now Tanzania, Africa, as
significant in scientific history;
(2) the significant role that Dr. Goodall's work and
scientific study have had on our knowledge and understanding
of both the natural and human worlds; and
(3) recognizes the positive role that Dr. Goodall's work
and research have had in education, science, and conservation
alike.
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. President, today I stand to recognize
one of the greatest scientists and leaders of our time and to introduce
a resolution honoring the educational and scientific significance of
Dr. Jane Goodall on this the 50th anniversary of her first day's work
in what is now Tanzania.
Fifty years ago today, Jane Goodall, a young and ambitious scientist,
first set foot on the shores of Lake Tanganyika to begin her research
under the direction of Dr. Louis Leakey. In the ensuing years, Dr.
Goodall became the world's expert on chimpanzees. She had numerous
groundbreaking discoveries. She published articles and books that
remain the foundational scientific works on chimpanzee and wildlife
studies. She established the Gombe Stream Research Center and the Jane
Goodall Institute to support further research.
Jane has received many of the highest honors in her field and has
become a prominent advocate for international conservation and peace.
Consequently, she has been recognized and honored by political leaders
and kings and queens throughout the world. The resolution I submit
today recognizes Dr. Goodall for her past, present, and future
contributions in the fields of science and conservation.
Beyond her incredible knowledge and skills in the sciences, Dr. Jane
Goodall is an amazing human being. Her love of others and of the living
things around her is what I believe drove her to achieve such great
successes. Anyone
[[Page S5859]]
who hears her speak can feel her sincere adoration for the chimpanzees
to which she dedicated her life. It is that love and drive that have
made Dr. Goodall world-renowned in her field and admired and beloved
throughout the world.
I imagine the ambitious young Jane, who boldly set out on the shores
of Lake Tanganyika, was much like the many inspired young people who
now work for her and with her. Across the globe, the same hope and
inspiration that took Jane into the jungles of Africa now drive
thousands of young people to organize conservation and community
programs through the Roots and Shoots program which was founded in
1991. These young people care about their communities, their natural
resources, and about the living things around them. They, like the
young Jane Goodall, want to make a difference in the world, and they
strive every day in their own lives to be a catalyst for positive
change.
I believe Jane's focus on encouraging young people is one of her
greatest accomplishments. Through her own experience as a young
scientist, she knows the strength of the connection young people
develop with nature if they have the opportunity. We live in a world
where many young people have no connection to the natural world or to
their community--a world where urban areas lack any connection to the
rhythms of nature, where video games and indoor activities predominate,
where a sense of community is absent. A generation lacking that
connection is doomed to failing. Jane saw the need to connect them. She
saw the need to inspire them. Roots and Shoots provides that crucial
connection.
Dr. Goodall's work with young activists does not focus on one area of
the world or on one issue of significance; her Roots and Shoots program
is in 120 different countries. Young people from preschool through
college gather in classrooms, nature centers, refugee camps, zoos, and
many other places to identify issues that concern them, and then they
act. And, boy, do they act. They are a force for positive change.
We thank Jane Goodall for all her contributions to making this a
better world.
We know that when one person in a community ignites positive action,
it is contagious. When each community works for positive change, they
connect. Community efforts become national endeavors. And nations take
action on a global scale. The world becomes a better place--one person
at a time.
With the help of student leaders and adult mentors, these young
people create hands-on projects to address the issues impacting their
homes and communities. Over the past two decades, tens of thousands of
young people have formed a network across the globe and are building
upon Dr. Jane Goodall's legacy of positive change in the world. This is
a network of hope and a generation of positive actors. Thanks to their
young and active hearts, our world will thrive into the future.
For 50 years, Dr. Goodall has worked to expand and improve our world.
Her work has spread so widely that Jane Goodall is a household name.
And with that name, young people from America to Africa and all around
the globe learn the wonders of the natural world and our link to the
creatures around us, including Dr. Goodall's beloved chimpanzees.
Dr. Goodall recognizes the power that each person has to make
positive change. She is a brilliant example of the great things that
are possible when one young person connects with the natural world and
is inspired to make a difference.
Today, I honor my good friend Dr. Jane Goodall. I ask my colleagues
to do the same. And I thank her for her example, and for her confidence
in the immense power that young people have to improve the future.
Let us all work together to make positive change in our communities
and support coming generations in their creative and noble ambitions.
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