Our environmental action heroes and one of the recipients of I’m Lucy profits, Roots & Shoots, have just featured I’m Lucy as their book of the month for the Roots & Shoots book club! The announcement was made via their e-newsletter, Branch Out.This e-newsletter goes to 12,000 Roots & Shoots members globally!!! We are thrilled that 12,000 amazing, action-driven and community minded kids, teens and adults will be learning all about Lucy and the plight of the bonobos.

We want to especially thank Dr. Jane Goodall. All of the work she has done and continues to do as an activist, teacher and pioneer inspires and motivates people into action every day. The afterword that she wrote for I’m Lucy adds a critical amount of information and urgency to the struggle of the bonobos and our environment. For her words, her time and her contribution, we are eternally grateful.

The Roots & Shoots program is a nonprofit organization created by Jane Goodall and dedicated to making positive change happen—for our communities, animals and the environment. With tens of thousands of young people in almost 100 countries, the Roots & Shoots network branches out across the globe, connecting youth of all ages who share a common desire to help make our world a better place. This powerful, youth-driven network fosters a fun, flexible and supportive environment where young people and adults come together to share ideas and inspiration, implement successful community service projects and participate in special events and global campaigns.

Visit Roots & Shoots to become a member and get involved today!

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Eleven year-old Haley Stern, president of Kids Save Apes, had an incredible journey to Boston in May where she met Jane Goodall, our very own Mathea Levine, and James Brooks - an incredible young man who has also done so much to raise awareness and money to help save great apes (and bonobos in particular). The reason for the trip was that Haley was chosen (with James as her co-pres) to present the great work that she’s doing as a member of Jane Goodall’s youth organization, Roots & Shoots. In her own words, here is the story of Haley’s adventure:

The weekend had finally arrived - I’d be meeting James Brooks, Mathea Levine - and of course - JANE GOODALL!

My dad and I drove into Boston with all of the Kids Save Apes material. “There it is!” I called up to the front seat. “Legal Seafood!” We walked in. I had only seen small photographs of James, but he was easy to spot. He was wearing a t-shirt with a gorilla, and a Great Ape Trust baseball cap. I sat down in between James, and Mathea’s kind daughters, Isabella and Delilah. I was not used to this… and I was thinking “Wow, this trip was arranged by me!? I was the one who was the advocate and talked with Roots & Shoots, and met James, and got every one together!”

So I had my meal, Mathea signed I’m Lucy for us, and we chatted a bit longer, and James, Neil (his dad), my dad and I walked out of the restaurant thinking about our next event - the Jane Goodall lecture.

It was great!! She receieved a standing ovation before she spoke a word. Of course, we were VERY proud of her accomplishments as well, being the advocates that us kids are.

I guess I expected the lecture to be long, boring, like most talks are! But Jane blew us all away. She talked about her unique experiences and the reasons for hope. She talked about kids, and how we ought to make a difference. To sum it up - you won’t regret it.

In the morning, we had a lot of fun. We presented our projects, gave a speech, and then…..met, and took pictures with Dr. Jane. It wasn’t like meeting someone famous, it was like meeting an old friend. She signed my book “Through a Window” and we were off. It was a great moment…and I hope to meet her again in the future.

After that, we went to the Franklin Park Zoo with James and Neil. We got face to face with gorillas ( a topic that I’ve reflected on through school reports ) and wow - that changed my life. When you get to know them for a while, the bonds really show!

Over all, I had a really amazing time, and I hope to have more events like this in the future !!

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Today, we had the pleasure of interviewing a brilliant, revolutionary and talented woman named Dr. Patricia Gray. She is the pioneer of Bio Music which basically examines music scientifically and science creatively - it studies the biological foundations of music. In particular, they study animal song (birds, whales, dolphins, mice) and animal music-ing (bonobos like Kanzi and Panbanisha making music) and then using their findings to understand incredible concepts like how humans can sing in tune together and clap rhythmically - it’s an amazing opportunity to delve into our evolutionary past since we share a common ancestor from 6 million years ago! These findings directly uncover the inner workings of our brains. We’ll be posting the interview (audio podcast) soon, so stay tuned…

I listened to Dr. Gray talk about how her work is so different from what’s typically done in scientific research because she isn’t just observing the bonobos, she’s participating in the process with them, she’s interacting with them. And, it got me to think about Dian Fossey who believed that all beings had the same rights and that they needed to be treated with the same respect as humans - a researcher who touched and communicated with the gorillas; Jane Goodall who named the chimps she worked with instead of giving them numbers as had always been standard practice; Sue Savage-Rumbaugh who communicates with bonobos and studies them as they move through their lives; and, Sally Jewell Coxe who is working to protect the bonobos in the DRC by involving, supporting and educating the people that share their country.

Of course, we know that this small summary barely scratches the surface of what these incredible women did and continue to do - but the common themes are: respect, interaction, doing something revolutionary and progress. And, we think that’s powerful stuff.

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We just found a recent interview with Jane Goodall by Copley News, and we couldn’t resist sharing the link with you. She talks about Chimpanzees, conservation, the environment and the importance of YOU. Her youth organization, Roots and Shoots, is highlighted as well. Don’t forget, Roots and Shoots receives half the profits (along with BCI) from the website sales of our book, I’m Lucy: A Day in the Life of a Young Bonobo.

Check out this awesome interview: Jane Goodall Interview

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So you want to help the bonobos, right? Well…think about that when we ask you this next question: What do you want to be when you grow up?

Have ever wondered what you would be if you wanted a job that would help the bonobos? Here is a list of professions that help save the bonobos and save the world. As always, you better write and tell us if we forgot something!

Primatologist: Primatologists, like Jane Goodall, study primates (235 species of lemurs, monkeys, apes and humans)

Zoo Keeper: Zookeepers take care of specific animals in zoos –feeding, cleaning, playing, watching their health. They specialize in specific animals and (the good ones) develop unique and special relationships with their animals.

Field Researcher: Field Researchers are in the field doing research! For the bonobos, this means traveling to the Congo and studying the bonobos in their natural habitat – wow!

Photographer: If you like the art more than the science, photographers document the bonobos for books, websites, scientists and more. Our super-duper-fantastic photographer, Marian Brickner, took the pictures for I’m Lucy at the Jacksonville Zoo in Florida.

Writer: Another job that isn’t totally science-related would be writing. A writer could write fiction (made up stories) or non-fiction (true stories and facts) about bonobos. Bonobo Kids writes for this blog, Mathea Levine wrote I’m Lucy. Writing is a great way to spread information and tell everyone about bonobos!

Veterinarian: Veterinarians are animal doctors. Usually, we hear about ‘vets’ that take care of our pets – dogs, cats, birds, etc….but, some vets specialize in wild or exotic animals.

Environmentalist: Environmentalists work in many different ways to save the environment. They study global warming, animal habitats, rainforests, pollution, recycling and more. Their goal is to create solutions to help the planet.

Conservationist: A conservationist is someone who works to protect natural resources to prevent the extinction or destruction of the natural resources - likes oil (fuel), water, animals, plants and more.

Activist: Activists work hard to ‘activate’, or set in motion, people and events around an issue. For instance, if you wanted to be a bonobo activist, you would tell people to come to www.bonobokids.com and get involved, you would tell people about I’m Lucy, you might think up a cool fundraiser to raise money for Bonobo Kids or another charity organization. Basically, you would shake things up and make a difference!

Tell us what you’re thinking…what do YOU want to be? How do you want to make a difference?

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