The Charles Darwin Foundation:
Protecting Galapagos through Research and Conservation
Photo Credits: Carlos Espinosa, Andres Cruz, Rashid Cruz, Lucas Bustamante
Ecological restoration on Floreana Island
Galapagos is an archipelago of 13 major islands, six smaller islands, and numerous islets in the eastern Pacific Ocean, and is home to thousands of indigenous plant and animal species found nowhere else on earth. It is 600 miles west of Ecuador and is under its administration. Galapagos covers 3,093 square miles of land and is spread over 23,000 square miles of ocean. Part of it was designated as a wildlife sanctuary by the Ecuadorian government in 1935, and in 1959, that section became Galapagos National Park.
Galapagos came into prominence when Charles Darwin traveled to it in 1835. His findings during his sojourn there contributed to his theories on natural selection, which were published in his book, On the Origin of Species.
The Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) was founded in 1959 by a dedicated group of scientists, researchers, and conservationists to help protect the delicate ecosystem of Galapagos. It is the oldest science and conservation organization in Galapagos, and its Research Station (CDRS) on Santa Cruz Island promotes scientific studies and protects the vegetation and wildlife native to Galapagos.
Of its 135 staff members, more than 70 are full-time scientists and researchers. Each year, an additional 200 visiting scientists are added to the roster. On top of that, CDF collaborates with over 500 scientists globally on an annual basis. It also functions as a science training ground, contributing greatly to the pool of local talented biologists.
Home of the only Galapagos Natural History Collections in Ecuador, CDF houses over 135,000 specimens, along with a collection of historical artifacts, archives, and a library that is accessible to the public. Visitors to CDRS are encouraged to connect and engage with nature. All of its objects, exhibits, designs, texts, and interpretive staff contribute to this purpose. It is a gentle call to action with layers of information aimed at the brain (knowledge), heart (emotion), and hands (experience).
Currently, CDRS has a small visitor exhibition hall. Annually, it attracts 170,000 visitors. For most, a trip to Galapagos is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so CDF understands how important it is to fully engage them. It also places a great deal of importance on engaging local community members so that they become more knowledgeable about their environment and CDF’s projects and become agents of change.
Landbird conservation team in the field
Marine bird scientists measuring a flightless cormorant
Flycatcher on Floreana Island
A new CDRS Visitor Experience is being developed in partnership with the California Academy of Sciences and the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in the Netherlands. It will challenge visitors to learn, think, do, and discuss through social interaction, education, and stimulation of all the senses. The experience will have five themes: Evolution, Ecology, Threats, Solutions, and Opportunities, each of which will be a distinct space or exhibit, but also, part of a larger whole.
The mission of the Charles Darwin Foundation and its Research Station is to tackle the greatest threats and challenges to Galapagos through scientific research and conservation action, in order to safeguard one of the world’s most important natural treasures. The foundation’s research focuses on “furthering understanding of the natural systems, their relationship with those living in the islands, and the intricate and delicate balance between climate, humankind, and nature,” according to the CDF website. Its work has produced one of the largest reference collections of Galapagos specimens in the world. This valuable scientific asset is crucial to developing strategies that are effective in preserving biodiversity.
With Galapagos National Park and other partners, CDF has reached numerous milestones. According to CDF, “Key among them is the first deliberate introduction of a non-native species—an Australian ladybug—to battle an introduced scale insect, which was decimating mangroves and other Galapagos plant communities in the early 2000s. CDF also established the first tortoise breeding and repatriation centers on Santa Cruz and Isabela islands, which are now managed by the National Park. Most recently, the foundation has been collaborating on Galapagos’ most ambitious conservation effort to date—the rewilding of Floreana Island, which includes the restoration of giant tortoises, the island’s original ecosystem engineers.”
For over two decades, CDF has also contributed much to the understanding of the marine component of Galapagos. During that period, it has produced long-term baseline data on subjects like subtidal ecological monitoring, sea turtles, shark ecology, fisheries, climate change, and marine invasive species in collaboration with other institutions in the Eastern Tropical Pacific region. CDF also established the foundation for science-based fisheries management, and it is the only organization in Galapagos with an established deep sea research program.
CDF’s vision is to champion the Galapagos Islands as a global model for conservation, inspiring sustainable practices and the next generations to protect Earth’s natural wonders. Even though Galapagos is of tremendous ecological value and importance, its challenges are many, from climate change; invasive species; illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing; land-use change; pollution; increased and unregulated tourism; and coastal development; to human population growth.
Little Vermilion Flycatcher
Waved Albatross
Giant tortoises on Alcedo Volcano_Isabela Island
Giant tortoise
Scalopped hammerhead shark
Because of these threats, there is a crucial need for an archipelago-wide initiative to rewild (restore to its natural state) Galapagos. Important steps in conservation and rewilding have been made on individual islands, but not on the archipelago as a whole. According to CDF, now is the perfect time to replicate these successes across the entire area. The aim of this holistic approach is to avert extinctions, effectively integrate people into the equation, and strengthen the ecosystem’s resilience against climate change.
In 2023, CDF drew up a Science Plan outlining its research and conservation priorities for the following five to ten years. Its purpose is to tackle the threats and challenges to Galapagos that are the most urgent by aligning its basic and applied research focus to five priorities: biodiversity, bioinvasions, climate and ocean change, ecosystem resilience and restoration, and science to action.
Since its inception in 1959, CDF has made remarkable strides in its efforts to conserve the marvel that is Galapagos. Through education and scientific research that leads to action, it has been successful in reigniting people’s interest in, and concern for, the archipelago and in rejuvenating its fragile ecosystem. With its current five-year plan and new Visitor Experience in the works, CDF will continue to effectively improve people’s understanding of the importance of Galapagos as well as ensure its prospects for the future.
SAVE THE DATE
Protect the Galapagos and Impact the World
July 31, 2025
6-8 p.m.
Anchor Host Location: Houston Zoo
A celebration of Charles Darwin Research Center‘s 65th Anniversary in 65 house parties around the world