The artisanal fishing sector is vital to the Galapagos Islands, but it is facing increasing challenges such as climate change, unfair value chains, and over-exploitation. Our program seeks to create a more prosperous, autonomous, and fair seafood system that is respectful of the natural environment, and fosters resilience against environmental, socio-economic, and climate change.

Scalesia forests once thrived on the Galapagos Islands, forming a unique humid ecosystem for plants, insects, giant tortoises and birds. Today, only 1% of the forests’ original distribution remains, with several endemic species, including the Scalesia themselves, struggling to survive. We are working to restore this important habitat and given the rapid rate of forest loss, it is a race against time.

Sharks have thrived on our planet for over 400 million years. Yet overfishing has drastically reduced global shark populations, with many shark species now threatened with extinction. Our scientific work seeks to inform conservation measures, so sharks are better protected in Galapagos and the Eastern Tropical Pacific.

The Eastern Tropical Pacific conceals extraordinary, vast deep-ocean ecosystems, plunging from oceanic islands to depths of 3,800 meter, most of which remain largely unexplored, presenting real challenges for effective protection and management. Despite their significance, these ecosystems are poorly understood and subject to persistent threats, including overfishing, climate change, pollution, and the prospect for deep-sea mining.

The G.T. Corley Smith Library at the Charles Darwin Foundation holds the world’s most comprehensive collection of publications on the Galápagos Islands. Its “Galápagos Collection” includes both scientific and grey literature, making it an invaluable resource for research and conservation. A digitization effort is underway to expand global access to this knowledge.