Our meeting with Jane Goodall
Reasons for hope
Some encounters leave an indelible impression. Jane Goodall is such a person for me. Her film ‘Reasons for Hope’ is an ultimate inspiration – a powerful testament to her tireless dedication and optimism. I have seen her before on stage at the World Forum in The Hague during a lecture when she received a medal. And via a personal video message at our 20th anniversary. But recently, during a partner dinner of the Jane Goodall Institute Netherlands, I was finally able to shake her hand unexpectedly. And that encounter changed something in me.
During dinner, I was allowed to present a check for €2,173 to her and Freddy from Tanzania on behalf of our travelers. A donation that they voluntarily left for the protection of nature and animals in Tanzania. A modest, but meaningful contribution.
When Jane heard that I was from Explore Tanzania, she looked at me and said: “What is happening in the country right now is terrible. With one signature, all US aid has disappeared. 29 million euros.” Her words touched me.
Suddenly that check felt like a drop in the ocean. How much impact can you make when the big money flows dry up and the world seems to be increasingly turning away from cooperation and protection?
But Jane did not end in gloom. She looked at me with that wise look and said: “But we are not giving up. It is precisely when the top of the world makes extreme choices that the larger layer below will unite.” Next week Jane will be 91 and she is still fighting for a better world. Still with hope. Reasons for hope. And unite we did tonight. Together with the Jane Goodall Institute Nederland and its partners.
Tanzania has taught me what connectedness means: with nature, with each other and with a greater whole. Jane Goodall has shown me that hope is not naivety, but a powerful choice. Jane proved that one person can make a difference – and that every step, no matter how small, matters. No drop is too small if together we can create a wave.
Let’s not get discouraged by the enormity of the challenges. Let’s inspire each other to keep contributing, keep working together and keep believing in a better future. For Tanzania. For each other.
It changed me. For good.
Marjolijn
Fotografie: Lennart Stolte
Fotografie: Jane Goodall Institute Tanzania
