Youngsters's lack of time in nature is 'appalling', says Jane Goodall

The award-winning primatologist tells New Scientist that training programmes should deal with the disconnect between younger individuals and nature

Mandatory Credit: Photo by FACUNDO ARRIZABALAGA/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (10454082aa) Anthropologist and UN messenger of Peace, Dr. Jane Goodall speaks during a session at the One Young World Summit in the Methodist Hall in London, Britain, 23 October 2019. Over 2,000 young people from over 190 countries gathered for the One Young World Summit, a global forum for young leaders, aiming to create the next generation of more responsible and effective leaders. One Young World Summit, London, United Kingdom - 23 Oct 2019

Jane Goodall on the One Younger World Summit in London in 2019

FACUNDO ARRIZABALAGA/EPA-EFE/Shu​tterstock

The disconnect between younger individuals and nature is “appalling” and a significant difficulty that society wants to handle, says the award-winning conservationist Jane Goodall.

Goodall, well-known for her groundbreaking fieldwork on chimpanzees, says she welcomes the UK authorities’s new qualification for 14 to 16-year-olds on pure historical past, however extra training is required to assist youngsters have interaction with nature.

“It’s one of many massive, massive issues, dissociation from nature,” says Goodall. “Scientifically, we want nature, and younger youngsters specifically [need it] to develop correctly …