Jane goodall inspires youth at QF school’s sustainability conference

Scientist, humanitarian, and environmental activist Dr. Jane Goodall has urged the next generation of innovators to take action in tackling sustainability challenges as Qatar Foundation brought together students from Qatar and from 13 schools from around the world for a conference focusing on how to build a more sustainable world.

Dr. Goodall - who is the founder of Jane Goodall’s Institute, and the youth-led global community action program Roots & Shoots, and UN Messenger of Peace - has dedicated her life to the study and protection of chimpanzees and their habitats, and finding harmony between humans, animals, and the environment. She delivered a keynote speech at the Global Innovation in Sustainability Summit (GISS) hosted by Qatar Academy Al Wakra, a school under Qatar Foundation’s (QF) Pre-University Education.

Despite growing threats to wildlife, people, and ecosystems, Dr. Goodall said she still has hope for the future and encouraged students to make a difference in the world.

“People need to understand that we are actually part of the natural world,” she said. “We depend on it for food, for water, for clothing, for clean air, for everything. But what we most depend on is a healthy ecosystem.

“We have lived for so long with a crazy idea that there can be unlimited economic development on a planet with finite natural resources and a growing human population. I see the human species right now as being at the mouth of a long, dark tunnel. And right at the end of that tunnel, a little star is shining. That is hope.

“But we don’t sit at the mouth of the tunnel and hope that that light will come to us. We have to roll up our sleeves, crawl under, climb over, and work our way around all the problems that lie between us and hope. That's what these young people are here for today.”

Goodall also spoke of the importance of looking at the whole picture when trying to solve an environmental issue in a way that considers the whole ecosystem: “We can close down a coal mine, and all its emissions are prevented from going into the atmosphere.

“But at the same time, we're probably causing hundreds of people to lose their jobs, and they, in turn, are going to harm the environment as they struggle to survive, which is why we need to address balance and alleviate poverty.”

Participating schools engaged their students in a “challenge” on sustainability action, focused on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), while students were invited to submit their project ideas to the GISS committee of educators and environmental sustainability experts.

A project exhibition on the day of the summit showcased the students’ work, as the event allowed them to engage with their peers from other schools and learn from experts attending the conference.

The summit also saw Dr. Goodall – who will also be speaking about biodiversity, ecosystems and values in QF’s upcoming Earthna Summit 2023, which is taking place from 8-9 March under the theme of Building New Sustainability Pathways for Hot and Arid Environments – participate in a panel discussion led by QF production Doha Debates’ youth ambassadors and students who shared their innovative sustainability projects at the summit.

It addressed the challenges they faced within their communities while working on their projects and how they managed to workaround it to reach their goals, providing other students with an opportunity to expand their views on innovative solutions for sustainability challenges.

“My project which I worked on back home with a friend of mine, focused on running a group that cleans parts of our city,” said Harriet Habicht, one of the students participating in the panel.

“The crucial challenge we faced was how can we involve the community? We had to make it fun and interactive. We organized competitions so people would join and had sponsors to secure prizes for participants.

“It encouraged more individuals to join us in cleaning the streets of our city and we managed to make it a consistent activity that we do every two weeks, so we can really make a change.”

In hosting the Global Innovation in Sustainability Summit (GISS), Qatar welcomed international students to the country for a week, who toured the country’s most prominent landmarks as well as attending the summit, which gave them a platform to showcase their work on tackling sustainability challenges.