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Our planet could be under strain, yet a sense of hope remains. A fresh honor originating at the science, music and arts festival the Starmus festival will encourage the public to make a difference.

This new Earth medal bearing Jane Goodall's name will be given to pay tribute to the esteemed British primatologist who passed away this year. It will recognise individuals and groups that protect the natural world.

The Medal's Framework

The first recipients are slated for announcement at the Starmus VIII festival in Tenerife and La Palma, which will run from October 17th to 22nd next year.

It was shared that Jane Goodall, a former Starmus advisory board member, had supported the medal's establishment. “The concept of having this medal, and Starmus being entrusted with organising it, is Jane’s,” a representative said. “Her desire was she would like this to happen. This is likely due to the unique bond she had with the festival.”

“The Starmus Jane Goodall Earth medal will acknowledge enduring projects undertaken to make our world a better place for people, animals and the environment and offer support for the continuation that work,” said a family member.

Format and Inspiration

A co-founder of Starmus stated that the medal – unveiled at a prestigious venue – will likely have multiple categories.

“The intent is for it to be very much similar to the Stephen Hawking medal honoring scientific outreach that we created exactly 10 years ago,” it was explained. Goodall was a recipient of that very medal.

Expressing concern on the outlook of the planet, a prominent voice remarked, “Honestly, it’s very hard to maintain optimism. Certain policies in one major nation represents an assault on knowledge. So this undermines the world’s efforts.”

“In truth, things don’t look very good which means we need to really start reflecting, much more seriously regarding the impact of human activity. This concern encompasses not only climate change, that’s the entire manner that we treat our environment.”

A Call to Action

Consequently, it was noted it was an opportune moment to follow her guiding principles. “I think that when we’re awarding this medal, we will be considering this core philosophy that Jane embodied – which made her priority, to transform the way we treat wildlife with which we share the planet.”

A major topic today was highlighted of false information. The theme of next year’s Starmus festival will be “the pursuit of factual understanding”.

“We realised that factual reality has become a subject of discussion when politics are involved. And it’s a very dangerous thing,” he commented. “The science of climate is a science; you cannot have any influence by political agendas in this field.”

Hope and Determination

The hope remains that this honor can motivate action. “The purpose is motivating others to participate and to show concern and to strive toward these goals, really. Whether or not we feel hopeful, we must look at working our utmost,” a statement concluded. “Be prepared for setbacks, yet we must have to work to achieve positive outcomes.”

A descendant engaged in environmental protection expressed optimism that “with guidance and once enabled, humans can be diligent stewards of Earth”, pointing to the programs of a foundation which, among its other activities, helps the youth become engaged locally, wildlife, and the natural world.

“As Jane Goodall often told everyone, the choices we make each day have an impact and it is up to us what type of impact we make,” he said. “We still have an opportunity and the Starmus Jane Goodall Earth medal will give encouragement and raise awareness regarding constructive efforts currently in progress.”