English zoologist and primatologist Jane Goodall has died at the age of 91. Challenging the boundaries of societal and emotional animal capabilities, Goodall is credited with changing our perception of how chimpanzees love, live, and interact with one another in the wild.
Goodall died on October 1 in California of natural causes, wrote the Jane Goodall Institute. Her death marks the culmination of a lifetime of activism.
“The Jane Goodall Institute has learned this morning, Wednesday, October 1, 2025, that D. Jane Goodall DBE, UN Messenger of Peace and Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute, has passed away due to natural causes. She was in California as part of her speaking tour in the United States,” a post shared to her official Facebook page read.
“Dr. Goodall’s discoveries as an ethologist revolutionized science, and she was a tireless advocate for the protection and restoration of our natural world.”
An advocate for volunteerism, Goodall also had an impact on those who love the outdoors and the wild world. Here is what the outside community had to say about her death.
Beth Pratt, director of the National Wildlife Federation, writes on X that her life’s work was inspired by Goodall’s from an early age.
“I think I’d like to be remembered as someone who helped people to have a little humility and realize that we are part of the animal kingdom not separated by it.” Jane Goodall
“It actually doesn’t take much to be considered a difficult woman. That’s why there are so many of us.”… pic.twitter.com/XIG4VQYLNG
— Beth Pratt (@bethpratt) October 1, 2025
In a post to X, the United Nations wrote that the agency mourns her loss.
Today, the UN family mourns the loss of Dr. Jane Goodall.
The scientist, conservationist and UN Messenger of Peace worked tirelessly for our planet and all its inhabitants, leaving an extraordinary legacy for humanity and nature. pic.twitter.com/C0VMRdKufF
— United Nations (@UN) October 1, 2025
Goodall often said that her next great adventure was dying. We wish her well in her quest.
Outside will continue to update this article with more reactions to Goodall’s death.
The post Remembering an Icon: The Outside Community Reacts to Jane Goodall’s Death appeared first on Outside Online.
