We summarise the history of the recognition of the values of and threats to Galapagos, the challenges in charting a path to sustainable development of the islands, and the role of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in these processes

Castillo M., Mauricio

Makoto, F. Edouard

Aquatic Commons

December 2008 37
THE CHALLENGES IN GALAPAGOS: A VIEW FROM UNESCO
By: F. Edouard Matoko & Mauricio Castillo M.
UNESCO–Quito, 6th floor, CFN Building, Av. Juan León Mera 130 y Patria, Quito, Ecuador
SUMMARY
We summarise the history of the recognition of the values of and threats to Galapagos, the challenges in charting a
path to sustainable development of the islands, and the role of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organisation (UNESCO) in these processes.
RESUMEN
Los retos en Galápagos: una visión desde la UNESCO. Una revisión breve a la historia del reconocimiento de los
valores y amenazas de Galápagos, nos permite trazar un camino para el desarrollo sostenible de las islas y plantear
el rol de la Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura (UNESCO) en estos procesos.
BACKGROUND
Galapagos is famous as a natural laboratory for studying
evolutionary processes, for its biodiversity and as an
example of the transformations that occur in a complex
socio-cultural island setting, and the islands have received
many recognitions and distinctions. Galapagos is a
National Park, a Marine Reserve and perhaps the best
conserved tropical oceanic archipelago on the planet. At
the request of the government of Ecuador, in 1978 the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organisation (UNESCO) declared the Galapagos Islands
the first Natural World Heritage (WH) site. In 1984, the
islands were declared a Biosphere Reserve. In December
2001 the World Heritage Committee included the Marine
Reserve in the WH site.
However, this worldwide recognition has fostered
rampant growth of tourism, which has caused exploding
immigration and urbanism and the well-known socio-
environmental impacts discussed elsewhere in this
volume. In April 2007, responding to a request from the
national authorities, UNESCO and IUCN conducted a
joint mission to evaluate the state of conservation of the
WH site and verified that it was seriously endangered by
several factors, including the uncontrolled increase of
tourism (annual rate of tourism growth between 1990
and 2005 of 14 %: CDF et al. 2008), increasing invasions by
introduced animal and plant species (Tye et al. 2008), and
increases in the human population and pollution. During
the mission, the UNESCO-IUCN team held several
meetings and workshops in Galapagos and Quito with
key stakeholders.
The results of this mission were presented in the 31st
session of the WH Committee in Christchurch, New
Zealand, July 2007, where the Committee adopted
Decision WHC-07/31 COM 7B.35 inscribing the Galapagos
Islands in the list of World Heritage in Danger. This decision
was sustained by Executive Decree No. 270 issued by the
president of Ecuador, Rafael Correa, which declared the
Galapagos Islands at risk and its conservation and
environmental management a national priority. The
decision of the WH Committee included a request to
Ecuador to present a first report by 1 Nov 2007, on the
measures implemented by the government after the
inclusion of Galapagos in the list of WH in Danger. The
government’s report was submitted, with information
on the advances made based on the new policies adopted.
THE ROLE OF UNESCO
The inclusion of Galapagos in the WH in Danger list alerts
the national and international community to the serious
threats the islands face and calls them to join efforts to
respond to the conservation needs of this WH site. In this
context, at the request of the Ecuadorian government,
UNESCO has ratified its commitment to the conservation
and the sustainable development of the natural heritage
of Galapagos and its willingness to continue providing
technical assistance for Galapagos to achieve the manage-
ment conditions required for its removal from the WH in
Danger list, in the shortest time possible.
UNESCO has set in motion several technical assistance
and institutional support processes to assist in saving
the site, among them technical support for the design and
implementation of Integral Educational Reform in Gala-
pagos, which will incorporate a vision of development
and conservation of natural resources. UNESCO will sign
a Cooperation Agreement with the Ministry of Education
establishing the institutional responsibilities to fulfill
this objective. Meetings and workshops have been held
in Galapagos to take this forward.
UNESCO has also, in November 2007, granted a
Vocations Patrimoine scholarship to an Ecuadorian student
to undertake doctoral studies on conservation. The
student will carry out a comparative study of the manage-
ment procedures of the protected zones of Galapagos and
Galapagos Commentary
38 Galapagos Research 65
the California Channel Islands (U.S.A.), and hopefully
contribute to developing improved management. The
candidate was selected through the Ecuadorian National
Commission for Cooperation with UNESCO.
THE NEXT 50 YEARS
The complexity of the social, political and environmental
problems in Galapagos makes it difficult to formulate an
outlook for the next 50 years, especially in the current
global and national political context; however, we outline
some of the main challenges for a common vision of the
management and sustainable development of the islands.
Galapagos has attracted much international technical
and economic assistance, and many studies have alerted
the population, the government and the international
community to the serious social, political, economical
and environmental threats. However, the national
authorities have not always used this information to
guide the development, growth and conservation of the
islands, while international assistance agencies have not
always taken into consideration the conservation and
development priorities of the islands, but have based
their efforts more on their own priorities, which has
limited their positive impacts.
The government of Ecuador, with international support,
has started some processes to attend to the problems in
the islands (among others: MAE Galapagos Initiative 2020;
GEF-UNDP Invasive Species project; IADB Environmental
Management Program; AECI Araucaria XXI Program;
GMR Management — JICA and USAID; IADB-MIF Produc-
tion Alternatives; Pro INGALA Italian Cooperation). But
at the same time, some political and economic actions are
increasing the pressures and threats to the archipelago.
It is thus essential that the national and international
community reach a single approach for understanding
the problems, and defining long-term tendencies and
potential intervention strategies responding to an integral
vision. It is also important to include external factors
such as the effects of climatic change that could affect the
islands in the near future. Plans for long-term sustainable
management should have a scientific basis but should
also take account of the development options demanded
by the local population. Most observers agree that the
challenge is to reach a consensus amongst the State
institutions, civil society and international cooperation,
on clear, concrete and effective policies for maintaining
and conserving Galapagos. How to arrive at such a
consensus? We present an outline for discussion which
attempts to trace a critical route to manage effectively the
processes of dialogue, negotiation and governance,
through democratic processes.
A prime factor will be the government’s willingness
to ensure open debate when determining social, economic,
environmental and development policies, to ensure the
participation of civil society, central and local governments
and non-governmental agencies in Galapagos, as well as
to establish their institutional responsibilities and roles
in implementing an agreed strategy. The current political
context of the National Constitutional Assembly presents
an unparalleled opportunity to establish overarching
principles for the future of Galapagos as world heritage.
The current Ecuadorian administration has taken decisive
action by recognizing that Galapagos is at risk and that
its conservation is a national priority.
A second aspect is the need for specific action on priority
issues, including education, health, quality of life of the
local population, natural habitats, biodiversity conser-
vation etc. In this respect, it is important from the
standpoint of the objectives of the Biosphere Reserves
and World Heritage programmes to pass on the lessons
learned to a global audience.
A third concern is the urgent need to find a common
language for communication between researchers,
students, teachers, politicians, decision-makers, co-
operation agencies and government authorities, to enable
constructive exchange of ideas on the full range of key
issues. It is necessary to communicate publicly and fully
the findings of the natural and social sciences without
sacrificing scientific rigour, so that the knowledge
generated by research done in Galapagos can be used by
civil society. The time is ripe to develop the communication
and popularization of science and technology as instru-
ments for the formulation of policies and for taking
technical and opportune decisions.
A fourth requirement is the need for Integral Education
Reform in Galapagos, so as to offer quality education that
meets the special needs of the local environment and
population. This process must include a thorough review
of the islands’ educational sector in order to define the
policies, vision, strategies, content and structure, the
educational processes and the administrative mecha-
nisms for implementing the reform.
The final point concerns international cooperation. To
make international support more effective, agencies
should focus their assistance on responding to plans and
proposals of the national government that aim to achieve
sustainable development in the islands (e.g. the GNP
management plan, executive decrees etc.) based on a
common understanding of the islands’ particular circum-
stances and outlook. It is essential that the national
government and the cooperation agencies jointly analyze
the socio-economic, political and cultural dynamics of a
society that is growing daily and thus places greater
demands on its natural resources (drinking water, energy,
land and biodiversity). This requires investment in human
capital to ensure the islands’ survival, as they become
increasingly vulnerable to pollution, waste and misuse
of natural resources.
CONCLUSION
UNESCO recognizes the renewed efforts of the government
of Ecuador and local authorities towards creating
Galapagos Commentary
December 2008 39
circumstances favourable to the sustainable management
of Galapagos, and is encouraged by the positive attitude
on the part of international cooperation organizations.
The openness shown provides a grand opportunity to
discuss, determine and implement the fundamental
changes required to ensure long-term sustainable develop-
ment of the islands. The WH Com-mittee decision to declare
Galapagos as heritage in danger should be understood as
Ecuador’s opportunity to call on the national and inter-
national community to take up new challenges, based on
a shared understanding of the problems, opportunities
and possibilities for the future of the islands.
LITERATURE CITED
CDF, GNP & INGALA 2008. Galapagos Report 2006–2007. Charles
Darwin Foundation, Puerto Ayora.
Tye, A., Atkinson, R. & Carrión, V. 2008. Increase in the number
of introduced plant species in Galapagos. Pp. 133–135, 153–
154 in CDF, GNP & INGALA, Galapagos Report 2006–2007.
Charles Darwin Foundation, Puerto Ayora.
THE RESTORATION OF GIANT TORTOISE AND LAND IGUANA
POPULATIONS IN GALAPAGOS
By: Linda J. Cayot
259 Karen St., Quincy, CA 95971, U.S.A. <lcayot@galapagos.org>
SUMMARY
The giant tortoise Geochelone spp. and land iguana Conolophus subcristatus programs of the Charles Darwin Foundation
and the Galapagos National Park Service are two of the longest running and most successful conservation programs
in the archipelago. Both involve a combination of captive breeding and rearing, repatriations, protection of nests  in
the field and introduced animal control. They have resulted in larger and healthier populations on several of the
islands.  This success was accomplished through the integration of scientific research and natural resource management.
RESUMEN
La restauración de las poblaciones de tortugas gigantes e iguanas terrestres en Galápagos. El programa para las
tortugas gigantes Geochelone spp. e iguanas terrestres Conolophus subcristatus de la Fundación Charles Darwin y el
Parque Nacional Galápagos son dos de los más largos y exitosos programas de conservación en el archipiélago. Ambos
involucran una combinación de reproducción y crianza en cautiverio, repatriación, protección de nidos en el campo
y control de animales introducidos. Poblaciones más grandes y sanas en varias de las islas han sido el resultado.  Este
éxito fue logrado por medio de la integración de la investigación científica con el manejo de los recursos naturales.
INTRODUCTION
The rearing and repatriation of giant tortoises Geochelone
spp. began at the Charles Darwin Research Station (CDRS)
in 1965 and is one of the longest running and most
successful programs of the Charles Darwin Foundation
(CDF) and the Galapagos National Park Service (GNPS).
This program, as well as the land iguana Conolophus
subcristatus program that began in the 1970s, exemplify
many of the most important aspects of the missions and
strategic lines of action of these two institutions, including:
– conservation and restoration of species and habitat;
– integration of research and management;
– collaboration with other institutions, including with
each other;
– involvement of visiting scientists and consultants;
– education and training, via the volunteer and scholar-
ship program;
– community involvement, such as with the tortoise
programs in Isabela;
– tourism, with rearing facilities and corrals of adult
tortoises attracting many visitors;
– international workshops and resulting plans of action,
such as the 1988 Herpetology Workshop;
– threatened species work catalysing invasive species
management programs.
A primary threat to the terrestrial fauna of Galapagos
is introduced species, including competitors, predators,
and disease, which impact the populations directly and
also indirectly through habitat destruction. Growth in
Galapagos Commentary


The challenges in Galapagos : a view from UNESCO

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