- This research, begun by renowned ethologist and conservationist Jane Goodall, transformed our understanding of our closest living relatives and, in turn, our own place in the world.
- The archive includes daily handwritten data on chimpanzee life—grouping, feeding, and ranging—on check sheets.
Highlights
Jane Goodall Institute Gombe Research Archive
The Jane Goodall Institute Gombe Research Archive—the physical archive of over 60 years of observations of wild chimpanzees in Gombe National Park comprising hundreds of thousands of handwritten notes by hundreds of researchers—is housed at Arizona State University’s Institute of Human Origins. The archive was initiated by Jane Goodall, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute.
The iconic photo of Jane Goodall in the field in Gombe National Park, Tanzania. Image credit Jane Goodall Institute
Gombe chimpanzees grooming each other. Image credit Ian Gilby
Jane Goodall's impact on chimpanzee research
By the late 1960s, a remote outpost in Tanzania was bustling with field assistants and students studying wild chimpanzees in Gombe National Park. This research, begun by renowned ethologist and conservationist Jane Goodall, transformed our understanding of our closest living relatives and, in turn, our own place in the world. Her early observations of chimpanzee tool use, hunting, and complex social relationships revolutionized the field of primatology. Since that time, a dedicated team has collected daily handwritten data on chimpanzee life—grouping, feeding, and ranging—on check sheets, as well as longhand narrative observations of behavior, including grooming, tool use, dominance, and mating.
Ian Gilby (left) is the director of the Jane Goodall Institute Gombe Chimpanzee Archive and Database, which is now housed at the Institute of Human Origins, Arizona State University. Gilby and Issa Salala (right) are logging their observations in the field. Salala was part of the long-term data collection team (now retired). Image credit Deus Mjungu
In the early 1990s, a massive effort to organize, protect, and analyze data from this priceless archive was spearheaded by Gombe researchers. The data was organized into a powerful relational database that has resulted in many exciting and important discoveries that build upon Goodall’s early findings and continue to be essential to a long-term understanding of chimpanzees.
Because of its scientific and historical value, this priceless resource will be properly protected and preserved, while also remaining accessible to scientists. The Gombe long-term data is a global asset for interdisciplinary scientific research and conservation, and the online database will make the data and findings accessible to a global audience.
Support the Gombe Archive and Jane's Roots and Shoots Program
To become a supporter of the Jane Goodall Institute Gombe Research Archive at ASU, donate here. This fund supports the purchase of fire- and waterproof cabinets to keep the irreplaceable archive protected in perpetuity!
One of Jane Goodall’s long-term projects is empowering young people to affect positive change in their communities through her “Roots and Shoots” program. Learn more about becoming involved at Roots and Shoots.
Written by Julie Russ
