The legendary Dr. Jane Goodall has revolutionized the way we study and view chimpanzees. It was nearly 50 years ago that she began exploring their habitats and observing their behaviors in the wild.

When Dr. Goodall first started her research in 1960, it was estimated that there were between 1 and 2 million chimpanzees living in African forests. Today, there are less than 300,000.

Dr. Goodall has made many remarkable discoveries, the most important of which is that chimpanzees are more human than people once thought. When she first began her work, no one was naming chimpanzees; they were giving them numbers, as many thought naming the chimps would make them seem more human.

As it turns out, chimpanzees make their own tools; there has even been warfare documented amongst them. Also, the chimpanzee mother-and-child relationship is very similar to that of humans -- there's a lifetime bond. Dr. Goodall has seen instances where a chimp died, and the mother mourned, showing signs of depression. In fact, chimps share more than 98 percent of our genetic blueprint.

Recently, 125,000 endangered lowland gorillas were discovered in central Africa. While this is good news, it doesn't ensure their future -- the gorilla populations are still in danger from hunting, disease, and loss of habitat.

We must be vigilant, and not take this as a sign that we do not need to continue to work hard to protect wildlife. There are many threats to wildlife today, the biggest of which is human: Industries, such as logging and mining, and human diseases cause harm to wildlife.

If you would like to help make a difference, the first step is to get involved. Dr. Goodall's Roots and Shoots program, founded in 1991, is a program with youth-driven projects fueled by knowledge, compassion, and action.

Their first project was carried out by local teens in Tanzania who educated villagers about more humane treatments of chickens at home and in the region's markets. Today, there are almost 100 countries involved in the Roots and Shoots program, and 100,000 members of all ages, from preschool to college.

It is also important to make informed purchases. Dr. Goodall has teamed up with wildlife-friendly companies Green Mountain Coffee and Theo Chocolate. Green Mountain's coffee beans are grown by a group of 2,700 small-scale farmers who live near Gombe National Park. Coffee beans thrive under the shade of a forest canopy, so the local growers have a personal interest (their income) in protecting the habitat of chimps.

Theo Chocolate uses cacao currently sourced in countries such as Panama, Venezuela, Madagascar, Ghana, and Ecuador; they are currently developing Tanzania as a source in conjunction with the Jane Goodall Institute. The company ensures that their growers are able to earn a living wage and want to protect the forests, which are a habitat to so much wildlife.

Dr. Goodall believes that we can ultimately achieve success, but that the future is in the hands of our youth. If they are educated, they will become impassioned and want to make efforts to protect our planet and all of its inhabitants.

Resources
Special thanks to Dr. Jane Goodall for sharing this information. For more information on the Wildlife Conservation Society, visit wcs.org. For more information on Jane Goodall's Roots and Shoots program, visit rootsandshoots.org. Special thanks to Theo Chocolate and Green Mountain Coffee for giving chocolate bars and coffee to our studio audience.