A few days ago, I watched Dr. Jane Goodall’s final message to the world — recorded to be released only after her death. Even after a lifetime of conservation work, she chose to leave us not with despair, but with a plea for hope.

That struck a chord.

If you’ve dedicated your career to positive impact, you’ve probably felt this too, the fatigue that comes from caring deeply in a world that seems to care less. It’s easy to grow cynical. To question whether individual effort still matters.

But Jane’s message reminded us that hope is not the absence of pain — it’s the decision to act despite it.

And many of us are still doing exactly that.

At Quest, we continue helping organizations lead positive change rather than chase it — translating purpose into tangible strategies, products, and partnerships that make sustainability not just a value, but a competitive advantage.

And with Habitats, we’re still launching wildly ambitious nature conservation and restoration projects.

Are we sometimes idealistic? Maybe.
But I’d argue it’s actually naïve not to act.

Everyone’s talking about the need to “invest in defence.” I think we should, just not the kind that relies on walls or weapons.

Our defence is empathy.

Empathy is what keeps us listening, adapting, and collaborating when things get tough. It’s what allows us to see systems, not silos. To build bridges between business and biodiversity, between purpose and performance.

When empathy becomes your core weapon, every reason to give up becomes your reason to act.

That reason, for many of us, is to keep showing that hope is not passive.
Hope is a practice.
It’s the daily choice to believe that what we do still matters. Because it does.

So yes, it’s been a hard few years.
But we’re still here. Still building. Still believing.
And that, I  hope, would make Jane smile.

Picture credit: Jane Goodall Institute