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Earth is under pressure, but a sense of hope remains. A fresh honor from the interdisciplinary festival the Starmus festival aims to encourage individuals to take action.

The medal will be given to pay tribute to the esteemed scientist and conservationist who died recently. It seeks to acknowledge those who champion our planet's biodiversity.

Honoring a Legacy

The inaugural winners are slated for announcement at the Starmus VIII festival in the Canary Islands, scheduled from 17–22 October the coming year.

It was shared that Goodall, who was a Starmus advisory board member, had backed the medal's establishment. “The concept behind this medal, and Starmus being entrusted to oversee it, is Jane’s,” a statement said. “She expressed that she wanted for this to occur. This is likely because of the close connection she shared with us.”

“The Starmus Jane Goodall Earth medal will recognize enduring projects undertaken to make our world improved for all living beings and ecosystems and offer support to carry on that work,” commented a relative.

Structure and Vision

A co-founder of Starmus noted that the medal – unveiled at a prestigious venue – would probably include several divisions.

“It’s going to be modeled after the Stephen Hawking medal honoring scientific outreach established exactly 10 years ago,” it was explained. Goodall herself received of that award.

Sharing thoughts on the outlook of the planet, one figure remarked, “Honestly, it’s very hard to be optimistic. Certain policies in one major nation represents an assault on knowledge. So this undermines the world’s efforts.”

“To be honest, things don’t look particularly bright therefore we must commence reconsidering, more deeply regarding the impact of human activity. And that’s not just climate change, that’s the whole way in which we interact with our environment.”

A Call to Action

Consequently, it was noted it was an opportune moment to emulate Jane Goodall's legacy. “I think that when we’re awarding the prize, we will be considering this essential spirit of Jane’s – which made her priority, to change the way we treat fellow creatures with which we share the planet.”

Another key issue at present is the proliferation of false information. The focus of next year’s festival is set as “the search for truth”.

“It has become apparent that factual reality has become contested when politics are involved. This is a perilous development,” it was said. “The climate science is a science; you cannot allow interference from politics in climate science.”

Hope and Determination

The goal is that this honor can motivate action. “It focuses on motivating others to get involved and to show concern and to strive toward these goals, truly. Whether or not we’re optimistic, we must focus on doing our utmost,” it was added. “Accept the possibility of failure, but you still have to work toward success.”

A descendant involved in environmental protection expressed optimism that “given direction and once enabled, humanity are capable of being conscientious guardians of Earth”, highlighting the programs of a foundation which, in addition to its projects, assists the youth get involved with their community, animals, and environment.

“As my late grandmother often emphasized, our daily actions make a difference and it is up to us the kind of difference we choose to create,” he said. “It is not too late and this medal will provide inspiration and increase understanding regarding the positive actions that are being undertaken.”