Invitation to celebrate the Official Opening and unveiling of the plaque for the refurbished Science Laboratories in the Edna Holmes Centre for Science with esteemed guest and speaker, Dame Jane Goodall, DBE.

Friday 10 May at 9.00am

Dorothy Pizzey Centre

Next Friday morning, 10 May, our students across the Early Learning Centre, Barbreck and Senior School will be fortunate to hear from renowned primatologist Dr Jane Goodall. With the 60th anniversary of her arrival in Gombe approaching in 2020, Dr Goodall is visiting Australia for a lecture and conversation series in May. St Catherine’s School is most fortunately the only school that Dr Goodall is visiting whilst in Melbourne. During her presentation, Dr Goodall will talk about her remarkable life studying chimpanzees and her conservation efforts.

“Goodall is best known for her almost 60-year study of chimpanzees in the Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania. Beginning in 1960, her work with the Kasakela chimpanzee community documented the familial and social interactions of the group and in the process drew comparisons to human behaviour. Goodall suggested the gestures she witnessed the chimpanzees performing – such as hugs, kisses, pats on the back and tickling – were evidence humans shared similarities with primates that go beyond genetics. Her early research also challenged the ideas humans were the only primates to use tools and chimpanzees were vegetarian – both of which were longstanding beliefs at the time.

Alongside her work with chimpanzees, Goodall founded the Jane Goodall Institute in 1977. The organisation now has 19 offices around the world and works to protect chimpanzees and their habitats. Goodall now dedicates the majority of her time to advocating for improved animal conservation.”

www.broadsheet.com.au/national/entertainment/article/dr-jane-goodall-coming-australia-speaking-tour

During her visit to St Catherine’s, Dr Goodall will tour our recently refurbished Science laboratories in the Senior School’s Edna Holmes Centre for Science and, specifically, visit our VCE Biology Class. Following this, Dr Goodall will officially open the new Science laboratories by unveiling the plaque at a special Assembly for students in Years 4 to 12 in the Dorothy Pizzey Centre. Parents are very welcome to attend the Assembly commencing at 9.00am in the Hall.

At Dr Goodall’s request, and as a reflection of her sheer joy of working with children, she will then spend some time with our younger ELC and Barbreck children in the Selina Yao Auditorium before visiting Barbreck girls working in the STEM Room. We look forward to recognising this very special visit to the School with the gift of a garden seat and possum box to be located in the large tree next to the Junior School Forecourt.

On behalf of all the students, staff and community members who will enjoy a remarkable morning with Dr Jane Goodall, I wish to acknowledge Barbreck parent Dr Sarah Triolo for facilitating this visit to St Catherine’s and wish to thank the following parents for generously sponsoring the visit with a gift to Dr Goodall’s Roots and Shoots Foundation at the Jane Goodall Institute Australia.

• Clare and Andrew Cannon
• Lucy and Andrew Fortey
• Sally Clarke and Tim Gullifer
• Lisa and Jack Hennessy
• Erica Gill and Brendan O’Brien
• Lindy Shelmerdine
• The PFA

Further information about Dr Goodall’s visit to St Catherine’s School can be found here.

Further information about Dr Goodall’s Melbourne lecture series can be found on the link below:

https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/jane-goodall-rewind-the-future-melbourne-tickets-52903182844