Jane Goodall’s Colorado Ties + New State Holiday

This past Wednesday, October 1, 2025, it was announced to the public that famed primatologist and anthropologist Jane Goodall passed away at the age of 91.

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Goodall was famous around the world for her work with chimpanzees, but also spent a considerable amount of time in Colorado, and because of her ties to the Centennial State, Governor Jared Polis made an announcement shortly after her passing that a new state holiday would be created in her honor.

Jane Goodall + Her Ties to Colorado

While most famous for her work with primates in Africa in the 1960s, Jane Goodall spent time in Colorado, most notably in Boulder, on numerous occasions in her later years.

Some of Goodall’s time in Boulder was spent at Whittier Elementary and Macintosh Academy, where she was a guest speaker, the University of Colorado-Boulder, where she spoke to a sold-out crowd at the CU Events Center, the Boulder County Jail, where she spoke to inmates about an environmental program, and she even spent some time planting trees in the popular college town.

Colorado's Newest State Holiday Honors Jane Goodall

On the day of Goodall’s passing, Colorado Governor Jared Polis announced that the state’s newest holiday would be Jane Goodall Day, celebrated in her memory on October 1st of each year.

Polis cited Goodall’s ‘Roots and Shoots’ organization, her numerous lectures that took place in the state, her love for animals, conservation, and the environment, and more as reasons for establishing the state holiday in the late anthropologist’s honor.

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Check out the full, official proclamation of Colorado’s newest holiday, Jane Goodall Day, from Governor Jared Polis here.