Photo: Andrew Russel
The Galapagos Science Center seeks to be the leading research center in Latin America that promotes the conservation of the Galápagos and its fragile ecosystems. We support the sustainable development of iconic and native species, ecosystem goods and services, and the local population through interdisciplinary science achieved through an integrated approach to research, experiential education, and community outreach.
The Galapagos Science Center serves as a research hub for international researchers to conduct both basic and applied scientific investigations to inform solutions to complex problems in the natural laboratory of Galápagos. We strive to educate students, local people, and citizens of the world about the challenges to stewardship of protected areas, to not only preserve the Galapagos but other similarly challenged settings around the globe through an integrative approach of innovation, discovery, and learning.
Photo: David Liberio
Through participatory methods and integrative approaches, the GSC works along three pillars:
1) Interdisciplinary research that includes the natural, social, and computational sciences.
2) Experiential education to inform the local community and citizens of the world about important global challenges.
3) Community support through a variety of mechanisms including the GSC Annual Community Symposium, training courses, science education in local schools, and sustainable development initiatives.
Understanding the dynamics shaping the Galápagos environment.
Studying how human wellbeing connects with island ecosystems.
Preserving biodiversity through science and action.
Exploring the life that makes the Galápagos unique.
Protecting marine ecosystems and resources.
Photo: JA
Join us in advancing science that makes a difference
In 2022, the Galapagos Science Center (GSC) and the broader UNC & USFQ Galapagos Initiative will celebrate its 10th Anniversary. We are proud to announce the World Summit on Island Sustainability scheduled to be held on June 26–30, 2022 at the Galapagos Science Center and the Community Convention Center on San Cristobal Island.
The content of the World Summit will be distributed globally through social media and results documented through papers published in a book written as part of the Galapagos Book Series by Springer Nature and edited by Steve Walsh (UNC) & Carlos Mena (USFQ) as well as Jill Stewart (UNC) and Juan Pablo Muñoz (GSC/USC). The book will be inclusive and accessible by the broader island community including scientists, managers, residents, tourists, and government and non-government organizations.
While the most obvious goal of organizing the World Summit on Island Sustainability is to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the GSC and the UNC-USFQ Galapagos Initiative, other goals will be addressed through special opportunities created as part of our operational planning of the World Summit.
For instance, we seek to elevate and highlight the Galapagos in the island conservation discourse, seeking to interact with other island networks in more obvious and conspicuous ways to benefit the Galapagos Islands, the UNC-USFQ Galapagos Initiative, and the world. We will seize the opportunity to further develop the I2N2 – International Islands Network-of-Networks. Further, we wish to highlight and emphasize multiple visions of a sustainable future for the Galapagos Islands and we cannot do this alone. Therefore, engaging the Ecuadorian Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Tourism, the Government Council of Galapagos, the Galapagos National Park, and local Galapagos authorities, including government and non-government organizations and local citizen groups, is imperative.
Borrowing from Hawaii’s and Guam’s Green Growth Program and the Global Island Partnership, we wish to examine existing global programs that emphasize island sustainability and their incorporation into life, policies, and circumstances in the Galapagos Islands. We will also seek to enhance our connections with the institutional members of our International Galapagos Science Consortium and expand the Consortium through the recruitment of other member institutions. We will also work to benefit islands and their local communities by working with citizen groups as well as important NGOs who seek to improve the natural conditions in the Galapagos and diminish the impact of the human dimension on the future of Galapagos’ ecosystems.
Lastly, we will use the World Summit to benefit UNC & USFQ and our constituencies through a strong and vibrant communication plan about the World Summit, creating corporate relationships as sponsors, identifying funding goals through donors, and benefiting our study abroad program for student engagement in the Galapagos Islands. We plan to develop and issue a Galapagos Sustainability Communique after the World Summit that includes the vision and insights of all its participants for a sustainable Galapagos with applicability to global island settings.
We are eager to hear your perspective and have you join us at the World Summit on Island Sustainability!