Who hasn't marvelled at those marvellous gorillas. Think of the movie "Gorillas in the Mist".
Jane Goodall has almost become a legend in her own lifetime in the work she has done in Africa with primates.
The Age reports on her visit to Melbourne Zoo yesterday:
"She is described variously as a scientist, a conservationist and a primatologist. But Jane Goodall has one simple label for the state of the Earth: a mess.
Overpopulation, pollution and the reckless use of fossil fuels, she says, are just some of the things that are poisoning the planet and threatening its creatures.
But despite the bleak outlook for the world, the 74-year-old Briton is encouraging people not to despair. "There's hope for the future, but only if we all play our part," she says.
Best known for her work with chimpanzees in Africa, Dr Goodall is in Melbourne as part of an Australian tour, speaking about worldwide efforts to save critically endangered species from extinction.
At Melbourne Zoo yesterday, she shared centre stage with the resident gorillas to help launch a mobile phone recycling campaign that will raise money for the primate conservation work carried out by the Jane Goodall Institute in Africa.
It is hoped the program will also lessen demand for coltan, a metal part for mobile phones that is mined in the Congo River basin and contributes to forest loss, affecting the habitat of threatened mountain gorillas and other animals.
"An awful lot's gone, but if we don't take care, an awful lot more will go until there's nothing left," she says.
Dr Goodall also said this week's release of the Red List of Endangered Species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature should serve as "a wake-up call for action" to help protect the world's most vulnerable species.
That list showed that 25% of the planet's mammals are under threat, with Australian mammals the most at risk in the developed world."
Jane Goodall has almost become a legend in her own lifetime in the work she has done in Africa with primates.
The Age reports on her visit to Melbourne Zoo yesterday:
"She is described variously as a scientist, a conservationist and a primatologist. But Jane Goodall has one simple label for the state of the Earth: a mess.
Overpopulation, pollution and the reckless use of fossil fuels, she says, are just some of the things that are poisoning the planet and threatening its creatures.
But despite the bleak outlook for the world, the 74-year-old Briton is encouraging people not to despair. "There's hope for the future, but only if we all play our part," she says.
Best known for her work with chimpanzees in Africa, Dr Goodall is in Melbourne as part of an Australian tour, speaking about worldwide efforts to save critically endangered species from extinction.
At Melbourne Zoo yesterday, she shared centre stage with the resident gorillas to help launch a mobile phone recycling campaign that will raise money for the primate conservation work carried out by the Jane Goodall Institute in Africa.
It is hoped the program will also lessen demand for coltan, a metal part for mobile phones that is mined in the Congo River basin and contributes to forest loss, affecting the habitat of threatened mountain gorillas and other animals.
"An awful lot's gone, but if we don't take care, an awful lot more will go until there's nothing left," she says.
Dr Goodall also said this week's release of the Red List of Endangered Species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature should serve as "a wake-up call for action" to help protect the world's most vulnerable species.
That list showed that 25% of the planet's mammals are under threat, with Australian mammals the most at risk in the developed world."
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