In my several years here at Montana State University, I have seen lectures by Salman Rushdie, Tim Flannery, Paul Russebegina, and Edward O. Wilson. Last Monday, I was fortunate to see primatologist and environmentalist Jane Goodall lecture at MSU (now I expect David Attenborough). She gave her talk, "A Reason for Hope," in which she highlights events in her life and career in order to urge people today to take a step toward becoming advocates for the environment. Goodall was first introduced by nature writer (and Darwin biographer) David Quammen, who was instrumental in getting Goodall to come to MSU, and who shared his surprise at how active the 74-year-old Goodall remains in the field. Goodall then proceeded to greet the crowd of nearly 3,000 as chimpazees do, as can be heard at about 3:50 in this TED talk from 2002:
I enjoyed listening to her talk about, when only four years old or so, she was determined to find out where the hole on a hen is that an egg comes out, and remaining in a chicken coup while her parents worried over their disappeared daughter. Her lecture stressed her mother's role in her life, from getting a young Jane animal books, spending the first months with her with the chimpanzee field study in 1960, to continuing to posthumously inspire her today. She recalled her feeling jealous about "that other Jane" that caught Tarzan's fancy. And she mentioned this video, where a man jumped into a chimpanzee enclosure to save a drowning male chimp, risking his life as several angry chimps were charging nearby. She told how the man had described seeing the chimps eyes, and connecting as if the chimp were a fellow human being. 
Despite her soft, scratchy voice, Jane had a very strong presence in front of the crowd. And she had a way of combining wonderful personal stories with current events and calls for action. Local articles discuss all of this (see here and here), so I won't reiterate. All I know is that I am definitely interested in having my son sign up for Goodall's Roots & Shoots program in about three years or so, if they have them where ever we are living then. The program strives to "foster respect and compassion for all living things, to promote understanding of all cultures and beliefs and to inspire each individual to take action to make the world a better place for people, animals and the environment." I wish Patrick was old enough to have come to the lecture, but at just a little over 2 years old, he would not have been able to focus for two hours on someone 50 yards down the bleachers.
This picture is from the book signing after the lecture, as is the picture of the autographed book and ticket above.More:
Primate Diaries: Jane Goodall - A Personal Tribute
The Intersection: A Reason For Hope
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