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Earth is under pressure, but optimism persists. A fresh honor from the interdisciplinary festival the Starmus festival seeks to inspire individuals to act.

This new Earth medal bearing Jane Goodall's name will honor in memory of the celebrated scientist and conservationist who died recently. It seeks to acknowledge individuals and groups that protect the natural world.

Award Details

The first recipients will be revealed at the upcoming Starmus event in the Canary Islands, which will run from 17–22 October next year.

It was shared that Jane Goodall, a former Starmus advisory board member, had backed the medal's establishment. “The vision of having this medal, and Starmus being entrusted to oversee it, was Jane's wish,” a representative said. “She expressed she would like for this to occur. This is likely due to the close relationship she had with us.”

“The Starmus Jane Goodall Earth medal aims to highlight ongoing initiatives undertaken to make our world improved for people, animals and the environment and provide encouragement to continue such efforts,” commented a relative.

Format and Inspiration

A co-founder of Starmus noted that the medal – unveiled at a prestigious venue – will likely encompass various fields.

“It will be modeled after the Stephen Hawking medal for science communication established exactly 10 years ago,” he explained. Goodall was a recipient of that award.

Expressing concern on the outlook of the planet, a prominent voice stated, “To be truthful, it is difficult to be optimistic. The current political climate globally represents an assault on knowledge. So this really cripples the world’s efforts.”

“In truth, the situation appears particularly bright therefore we must begin to thinking again, with greater urgency about the consequences of human activity. This concern encompasses not just climate change, that’s the entire manner that we treat our environment.”

Inspiring Change

Therefore, observers believe this is a good time to follow Jane Goodall's legacy. “I think that when we’re awarding this medal, we will be considering this core philosophy that Jane embodied – that was her foremost concern, to transform how we regard wildlife with which we share the planet.”

Another key issue today is the proliferation of misinformation. The focus of the upcoming Starmus festival will be “the search for truth”.

“It has become apparent that factual reality has become a matter of debate when politics are involved. And it’s a perilous development,” he commented. “The climate science is a science; you cannot have any influence by political agendas in climate science.”

Hope and Determination

The goal is that the medal will inspire positive change. “It focuses on inspiring individuals to get involved and to show concern and to strive toward these goals, really. Regardless of if we’re optimistic, we have to look at working the best we can,” a statement concluded. “Accept the possibility of failure, yet we must have to work towards succeeding.”

A family member engaged in environmental protection expressed confidence that “with guidance and once enabled, humanity can be diligent stewards of Earth”, citing the work of a foundation which, among its other activities, assists the youth get involved with their community, animals, and the natural world.

“As Jane Goodall repeatedly emphasized, the choices we make each day have an impact and the responsibility lies with us what type of impact we choose to create,” he said. “It is not too late and the Starmus Jane Goodall Earth medal will provide inspiration and raise awareness regarding beneficial initiatives currently in progress.”