Jane Goodall introduces her work on the Gombe chimpanzee studies. On the table is her gorilla toy, named Jubilee, from her father; her fondness for the toy started her early love for animals. [CnDG by Jiao Meng]

Goodall says 'welcome' in chimpanzee language. [CnDG by Jiao Meng]

Jane Goodall, the British chimpanzee researcher, shared some thoughts on her work and China's environmental protection at a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday, part of a global celebration tour to mark the 50th anniversary of her Gombe chimpanzee studies in Tanzania.

Here are some random quotes by Goodall at the press conference:

"When I first came to China in 1998, China was suffering a serious flood."

"China has 1/5 population of the world. It's very meaningful to start a program to raise the public's awareness of environmental protection." [The program is Roots and Shoots, a student-oriented non-profit organization.]

"We encourage young people to be involved in environmental protection activities, and right now we have offices in four Chinese cities and more than 600 R&S groups are playing positive role in the local environmental protection campaign."

"The difference between animals and our human beings are not that clear. We should treat them more equally and more politely."

(China Development Gateway by Jiao Meng September 16, 2010)