13 Reasons Why Jane Goodall Is So Badass

55 years ago, Jane Goodall walked into the forests of Africa looking for wild chimpanzees, and she hasn’t stopped working to learn about and protect them since. Jane Goodall might be 81, but here’s 13 Reasons she’s still totally badass.

1. She started her life’s work at 26.

Creasted by Pamela using Jane Goodall Institute video / Via Youtube

26! 26!!! How many people can say they began their life’s work at 26?!

2. She traveled through the forests searching for chimpanzees alone, refusing help or company.

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She would’ve gone to Gombe alone if British authorities didn’t make her take her mum with her. And she went off to observe the chimps all alone.

Created by Pamela using National Geographic video / Via Youtube

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3. She lived in a tent for five years at the beginning of her field research.

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Homegirl committed to her eco-lifestyle.

4. She was accepted into the Cambridge Ph.D. program without an undergrad degree.

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Do you know how often that happens anywhere? Basically never. Do you know how often that happened at Cambridge? Once. (Probably.*)

5. She married Gombe’s first National Geographic photographer and then later on the director of Tanzania’s national parks.

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Jane’s awesome all on her own, but what’s amazing about her personal life is that she fell in love with people just as passionate about the wild as herself. How many people can say they spent their honeymoon following a newborn chimpanzee together through the African bush? Here’s to her love for adventure!

6. She's honored on the Tree of Life.

Disney Concepts / Via Twitter: @Magical_Express

Disney and Jane have always been tight, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom featured the primatologist’s favorite Gombe chimp, David Graybeard, in a carving on their iconic Tree of Life at its grand opening, which she attended.

7. She’s basically one of Charlie’s Angels (but for the environment).

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Jane’s one of “Leakey’s Angels,” the three famous “trimates” sent out by anthropologist Dr. Louis Leakey to study great apes in the wild.

8. She’s helped rescue over 190 orphaned and injured chimpanzees and counting.

Pyper1887 Tumblr / Via Jane Goodall Institute Youtube video

Pyper1887 Tumblr / Via Jane Goodall Institute Youtube video

At least, that’s how many currently live at the sanctuaries she founded: Tchimpounga Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Center in the Republic of Congo (150+) and Chimp Eden in South Africa (40+). But she’s also on the board of the largest chimp sanctuary in America and she’s supported dozens more through funding and awareness building.

9. She's a freaking knight.

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Ok, she’s a “Dame of the British Empire,” which is the female equivalent of a knight. But still, the proper verb would be she’s been knighted as a DBE by the Queen of England.

10. She was named a UN Messenger of Peace.

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The UN knows how awesome Jane is. Most UN Messengers of Peace serve for 3 years. Jane has served for over 13.

11. She’s helped effectively end medical testing on chimpanzees.

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She helped the National Institute of Health decide to retire its chimpanzee testing population in 2013. And in 2015, over two decades after she fought to get wild chimpanzees listed as “endangered,” she helped captive chimpanzees go from “threatened” to “endangered” as well, making it nearly impossible to continue medical testing on them.

12. She's a pop culture darling.

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In the 80’s when cartoonist Gary Larson jokingly called Jane a “tramp,” and she came out of the forest long enough to find out about it, she found it funny. She invited Larson to visit Gombe, and the Institute was permitted to sell a shirt featuring the cartoon to benefit chimps. The Simpsons also poked fun at a Jane-like figure on their show, while The Wild Thornberrys had Jane star as herself saving wildlife in the cartoon.

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And she’s proved her comedy chops exchanging chimp greetings with comedy heavyweights Jon Stewart, Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert, Jay Leno and John Oliver.

Seriously, just check this shade she throws at John Oliver while pretending to be a chimp that doesn't want to share her food.

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Oh snaaaaap! Check out her magnificence here.

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Angeline Jolie quotes Jane as her inspiration.

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Jackie Chan actually called her his idol.

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Basically everyone wants to be Jane.

13. She still travels over 300 days a year advocating for chimps and preaching conservation.

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How many 81 year olds do you know that travel that much and work that hard? And throughout her life she managed to rack up nearly 50 honorary degrees, published 28 books including 11 children’s books, and appeared in nearly 20 films.

Photo courtesy of Thomas D. Mangelsen / Images by Nature / Via Victorinox Swiss Army Blogs

Stay gold, Jane. Stay gold.

The Huffington Post

HAPPY CHIMPANVERSARY JANE!

*Some sleuthing proved that Jane's actually one of nine accepted into a Cambridge Ph.D. program without an undergrad degree but I really liked this joke so let's just pretend.