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Earth is under pressure, however a sense of hope remains. A novel accolade from the interdisciplinary festival Starmus seeks to inspire the public to act.

The medal is to be awarded to pay tribute to the celebrated scientist and conservationist who died recently. It will recognise individuals and groups that protect our planet's biodiversity.

Honoring a Legacy

Initial honorees are expected to be announced at the upcoming Starmus event in the Canary Islands, which will run from 17–22 October next year.

Reports indicate that Goodall, who was a member of the festival's board, had supported the medal's establishment. “The vision behind this award, and the festival being tasked with organising it, is Jane’s,” a statement said. “Her desire was she would like for this to occur. This is likely due to the unique relationship she shared with us.”

“This medal aims to highlight enduring projects carried out to make our world improved for people, animals and the environment and provide encouragement to continue that work,” said a family member.

Structure and Vision

One of the founders of Starmus stated that the medal – which was announced at a scientific institution – will likely include several divisions.

“It’s going to be modeled after the Stephen Hawking medal honoring scientific outreach established a decade past,” it was explained. Jane Goodall was an honoree of that award.

Expressing concern about the future of the planet, a prominent voice said, “Frankly, it's challenging to feel hopeful. Certain policies globally is conducting a war on science. This situation significantly hampers global initiatives.”

“Realistically, things don’t look very good so we have to begin to reflecting, with greater urgency regarding the impact of human activity. And that’s not only climate change, that’s the whole way in which we interact with our environment.”

Inspiring Change

Therefore, it was noted this is an opportune moment to emulate her guiding principles. “It is believed that when we’re awarding this medal, the focus will be on this essential spirit that Jane embodied – that was her foremost concern, to transform how we regard wildlife with which we share the planet.”

A major topic today involves the spread of misinformation. The central topic of the upcoming festival will be “the pursuit of factual understanding”.

“We realised that factual reality has become a matter of debate where political interests are involved. This is an alarming trend,” it was said. “Climate research remains a scientific discipline; you cannot have any influence by political agendas in climate science.”

Hope and Determination

The aspiration remains that the medal will inspire concrete steps. “It’s about inspiring individuals to engage and to show concern and to work in that direction, really. Whether or not we feel hopeful, we must focus on doing the best we can,” a statement concluded. “Accept the possibility of setbacks, but you still continue striving to achieve positive outcomes.”

A family member engaged in environmental protection shared confidence that “with guidance and when empowered, people can be conscientious guardians of Earth”, highlighting the work of a foundation that, in addition to its projects, empowers the next generation become engaged with their community, animals, and environment.

“As Jane Goodall constantly emphasized, our daily actions are significant and the responsibility lies with us what type of impact we make,” he said. “There is still time and the Starmus Jane Goodall Earth medal will offer support and raise awareness regarding beneficial initiatives that people are making.”