I'm highly political. I spend an awful lot of time in the U.S.

The words of Jane Goodall — “I’m highly political. I spend an awful lot of time in the U.S. trying to influence decision-makers. But I don’t feel in tune with British politics” — carry the quiet strength of one whose heart is bound to causes greater than nations. In them, she reveals the paradox of her mission: though born of Britain, her struggles and her labors drew her across oceans, where the fate of the earth itself seemed more immediately swayed. She was not a seeker of power for herself, but a steward of life, striving to bend the ears of those who shaped the destiny of forests, creatures, and generations yet unborn.

Her words remind us that to be political is not always to belong to a party or a parliament. It is to recognize that laws, treaties, and policies shape the fate of creation, and that the voice of one who cares can move the mighty. Goodall spent her life among the chimpanzees, but her mission was never only about them. It was about the web of life, about the soil, the water, the air, and the children who would inherit them. To be “out of tune” with British politics was not refusal, but recognition that her calling resonated more strongly in another arena.

History has known such figures before. Consider Mahatma Gandhi, who though he lived within the British Empire, found his voice not in London’s halls but in the villages of India, where spinning wheels and salt marches became symbols of resistance. He too was political, but in a way that transcended formal structures, seeking influence not through office but through truth. Goodall’s path reflects a similar spirit: the courage to labor where her influence mattered most, unbound by geography.

Her confession also teaches humility. Though celebrated for her scientific discoveries, she understood that science alone cannot save a world without the will of leaders. Thus she took upon herself the harder task: not merely to study, but to persuade; not merely to observe, but to act. To influence decision-makers is a burden of patience, persistence, and often disappointment — yet it is also the surest way to transform vision into reality.

Let future generations remember this lesson: that to be political is not to hunger for office, but to care so deeply for truth, justice, or the earth itself that one cannot remain silent. The place where your voice is heard most strongly may not be your homeland, but the land where destiny calls you. In Goodall’s words we find the courage to step beyond borders, to labor not for party or nation alone, but for the eternal causes that bind all humanity together.