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PUBLICATIONS

Heterogeneous preferences for cleaner maritime transportation in the tourism sector: A choice experiment from the Galápagos Islands

Maritime transport is essential for tourism in the Galápagos Islands, but it also represents a significant source of pollution.This study explores tourists’ willingness to pay for cleaner propulsion technologies, electric and hybrid, as alternatives to internal combustion engines, aiming to promote more sustainable tourism in this fragile ecosystem.

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August 1, 2025

Global tracking of marine megafauna space use reveals how to achieve conservation targets

An international team of over 400 scientists, including Alex Hearn, professor at Universidad San Francisco de Quito and researcher at the Galapagos Science Center, tracked more than 12,000 marine animals via satellite. The goal of this global effort was to accurately identify migratory routes and key areas used by different species for feeding, breeding, or movement, in order to generate essential information for their conservation.

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July 1, 2025

First epidemiological survey of Toxoplasma Gondii in Galapagos sea lions (Zalophus wollebaeki)

In this study, the exposure to the parasite Toxoplasma gondii was evaluated for the first time in Galápagos sea lions (Zalophus wollebaeki), a vulnerable and endemic species. Through serological, molecular, and histopathological analyses of samples from both live animals and carcasses, a high seroprevalence was identified in juveniles (79%), along with the presence of parasitic DNA in lung tissues.

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June 26, 2025

Characterizing juvenile blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus) nursery areas in the Galapagos: new methods and understandings

A recent study conducted on San Cristóbal Island, Galápagos, successfully identified nursery areas of the blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus) using drones as the primary tool. This research compared the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with traditional methods such as gillnets, revealing that drones allow for significantly higher and non-invasive detection of juvenile sharks in coastal areas.

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June 10, 2025

Mapping Important Shark and Ray Areas (ISRAs) in the Central and South American Pacific: Existing knowledge and data needs

Chondrichthyans, a class of aquatic vertebrates (sharks, rays, and chimaeras), are facing a global extinction crisis driven by overfishing, habitat degradation, climate change, and pollution. Of the approximately 1,250 species studied, more than one third (37%) are at risk of extinction according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List, making this group the second most threatened among vertebrates.

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May 22, 2025

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USFQ

UNC Center for Galapagos Studies

USFQ Galápagos

Univeristy of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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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.

The Galapagos Science Center on San Cristobal Island, Galapagos

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!