www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday March 31, 2007 - 5 Roundabout route to dream job Continued from page 4 "Everybody around her at that time was telling her it was impossible, she shouldn't try it. But she did, and this incredible career followed." Similarly, Lawton applied in 1988 to attend naturalist Gerald Durrel's Wildlife Preservation Trust, a renowned program that accepts 20 students from across the world to study the reintroduction of endangered species to the wild. Lawton was a magazine editor at the time with a degree in history and English, and no background in zoology, biology, or anything like it. She applied anyway. "I thought, Gerald Durrel, like Jane Goodall, had no scientific qualifications himself, and was very much of the view that if you care, if you're passionate, if you want to do something, go out and do it," Lawton said. "So I wrote him a letter saying I really, really, really wanted to do this, so he really, really, really should pick me." And he did. "I got there and they'd picked people like wildlife rangers from Kenya, and they were all looking at me and sort of going, why are you here?" Lawton said, laughing. "But wow, it was a fantastic program." Lawton studied the red-ruffed lemur, an endangered species found only in Madagascar, an island that's being deforested at a rapid rate. "There's very little forest left, and if all the forest goes, all the Lemurs will go," she said. That experience motivated her to con- tinue to work with wildlife. Now, at the Jane Goodall Institute of Canada, Lawton says she's reached the peak. "It really feels in some ways like I've been training myself for this job through the different professional experiences that I've had throughout my life." She hopes to add to those experiences, including by taking a trip to Africa to see the institute's work firsthand, something she feels is critical so she can convey to potential donors just what they'd be supporting. If you ask the newly-installed executive director, all they need to do is hear Goodall speak to be convinced to join her causes. "When you meet someone like Jane Goodall, it makes you look up from your daily life and go, `Oh, wow, all this stuff isn't quite as important as I thought it was.' You start to look at the things that really are important," said Lawton. "I think that's why Jane is such a tremendous figure for people. She's taken it beyond `let's save chimpanzees' to `let's work with people to improve their lives' to `come on guys, there's a chance for hope here, there's a chance for peace. There's a chance for us all to live together in some way that's workable.' "I think if more people could be exposed to her messages, we'd all be in a much better place." Goodall will be giving a public lecture at U of T in September. For more on the Jane Goodall Institute of Canada, visit www.janegoodall.ca. EXPERIENCE THE CV750 · 490 Air Watts of Power · Cleanstream Hepa type Filtration · Complete with economy electric ensemble HALTON VACUUM DEPOT DIFFERENCE POWER PERFORME ter Brand Selection! n W i nce e ar a Cl 490 WE CARRY QUALITY CLEANING PRODUCTS FROM THE LEADING BRANDS. Only MSRP $809.99 $ Final Clearance included: Powerhead with on 2006 · cord management Miele · 30' Electric Hose with handle Canisters · 7 piece Tool Set 549 99 Save $260 Canister · 12 amp · power brush · tools on board · cord rewind Upright · 13" wide · 12 amp · HEPA · tools and hose $ # 6852 299 99 # 2900A $ 99 99 N UP PE R M Save $100 DU ND AS ST .E . Save $30 SALES · SERVICE · SELECTION · QUALITY BRANDS · INSTALLATION HALTON'S TRUSTED FLOOR CARE SPECIALISTS! L ST .W . ID DL ER D. E. 2379 Trafalgar Road 905-257-6145 Mon.-Fri.9:30-6:00 Sat. 9:30-4:00, Sun. CLOSED DU ND Trafalgar Ridge Shopping PLaza (in the Winners/HomeSense plaza a) Beside Scotia Bank TR AS AF AL GA R RD .