Quotes
“What I have learned from orangutans is that we humans must not turn our backs on our own biological heritage. Modern society promotes the ideal of the rugged individual. For men you have the Clint Eastwood persona — the Marlborough Man. For women you have single moms raising their kids alone. The ideal Western male rides into town, fights the bad guys, falls in love and then heads off into the sunset. He is strong and solitary just like an orangutan, but he represents an evolutionary dead end. Many of today’s problems are a result of abandoning our human biological roots. We must look to our distinctive gregarious human heritage; living and working in family groups and communities if we want to be successful. Otherwise we are just stressed out ‘orangutans’ in an urban setting.”
“As I sit, my back leaning against a damp, moss-covered tree trunk, my eyes sweeping the canopy above, my ears straining to catch the crack of a distant branch that betrays an orangutan moving in the treetops, I think about how we humans search for God. The tropical rain forest is the most complex thing an ordinary human can experience on this planet. A walk in the rain forest is a walk into the mind of God.”
"I’ve always wanted to study the one primate who never left the Garden of Eden. I want to know what we left behind."
“As I sit, my back leaning against a damp, moss-covered tree trunk, my eyes sweeping the canopy above, my ears straining to catch the crack of a distant branch that betrays an orangutan moving in the treetops, I think about how we humans search for God. The tropical rain forest is the most complex thing an ordinary human can experience on this planet. A walk in the rain forest is a walk into the mind of God.”
"I’ve always wanted to study the one primate who never left the Garden of Eden. I want to know what we left behind."
Interesting Facts
- Galdikas was inspired by Curious George at the age of 6, and by the second grade she had decided what she wanted to be in life: an explorer
-Galdikas has studied orangutans for over 4 decades
-Orangutan means person of the forest, something that originally drew Galdikas to the ape
-Galdikas has studied orangutans for over 4 decades
-Orangutan means person of the forest, something that originally drew Galdikas to the ape