Anyone who tries to improve the lives of animals invariably comes in for criticism from those who believe such efforts are misplaced in a world of suffering humanity.

I don't have any idea of who or what God is. But I do believe in some great spiritual power. I feel it particularly when I’m out in nature. It’s just something that's bigger and stronger than what I am or what anybody is. I feel it. And it's enough for me.

Of course we're all programmed genetically to some extent. But the "selfish gene" thesis doesn't explain everything.

Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.

I always loved animals. And when I was ten, I decided I had to go to Africa and live with animals and write books about them.

For those who have experienced the joy of being alone with nature there is really little need for me to say much more; for those who have not, no words of mine can ever describe the powerful, almost mystical knowledge of beauty and eternity that come, suddenly, and all unexpected.

Mainly because as women's education increases all around the planet, we find that family size tends to drop.