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The world might be under strain, however a sense of hope remains. A new award from the interdisciplinary festival Starmus will encourage individuals to take action.

The Starmus Jane Goodall Earth medal will be given to pay tribute to the celebrated British primatologist who passed away recently. It seeks to acknowledge those who protect our planet's biodiversity.

Honoring a Legacy

The first recipients are slated for announcement at the Starmus VIII festival in the Canary Islands, scheduled from October 17th to 22nd the coming year.

It was shared that Jane Goodall, who was a member of the festival's board, had supported the award’s creation. “The idea of having this award, and the festival being tasked to oversee it, was Jane's wish,” a representative said. “She expressed that she wanted this to happen. This is likely because of the close relationship she shared with us.”

“This medal will acknowledge ongoing initiatives undertaken to build an environment a better place for all living beings and ecosystems and provide encouragement to continue such efforts,” said a family member.

Format and Inspiration

One of the founders of Starmus indicated that the medal – which was announced at a scientific institution – will likely encompass various fields.

“It will be modeled after the Stephen Hawking award honoring scientific outreach established a decade past,” he explained. Goodall was a recipient of that very medal.

Sharing thoughts on the outlook of the planet, a prominent voice remarked, “To be truthful, it is difficult to be optimistic. Present governance globally represents an assault on knowledge. This situation significantly hampers global initiatives.”

“In truth, things don’t look particularly bright which means we need to commence thinking again, much more seriously about the consequences of human activity. And that’s not just global warming, that’s the entire manner that we treat the natural world.”

A Call to Action

Therefore, it was noted this is an opportune moment to follow Jane Goodall's legacy. “I think that in bestowing the prize, we will be considering this core philosophy that Jane embodied – which made her foremost concern, to transform our relationship with fellow creatures around us.”

A major topic currently involves the spread of misinformation. The central topic of the upcoming Starmus festival will be “the search for truth”.

“We realised that factual reality has become a subject of discussion when politics is involved. This is an alarming trend,” it was said. “The climate science is a science; you cannot allow interference by political agendas in climate science.”

Hope and Determination

The goal is that the medal will spur concrete steps. “The purpose is motivating others to get involved and to show concern and to work in that direction, really. Whether or not we feel hopeful, we must focus on working our utmost,” it was added. “Be prepared for setbacks, yet we must have to work toward success.”

A family member engaged in conservation work shared confidence that “given direction and once enabled, people are capable of being diligent stewards of our planet”, citing the initiatives of a foundation which, among its other activities, assists the youth get involved with their community, animals, and environment.

“As my late grandmother often reminded us, the choices we make each day are significant and it is up to us what type of impact we make,” it was stated. “It is not too late and this medal will give encouragement and raise awareness about beneficial initiatives currently in progress.”