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Connecting with Nature

Tortoise outreach activities
© Christian Ziegler
Gills Club in the laboratory
© Gills Club / Galapagos Science Center

Overview

We provide engaging educational resources, environmental experiential opportunities and field-based outreach sessions to enable the young people and wider community of Galapagos to connect with nature and experience the natural world around them, with the aim of fostering stronger conservation and sustainability values.

Project Partners

Galapagos Science Center Galapagos National Park Charles Darwin Foundation Education 4 Nature Galapagos Ecology Project International
Tortoise conservation outreach activities in Galapagos
© Anne Guézou

The problem

Research shows that people who connect with nature as children develop stronger conservation and sustainability values and are more likely to protect nature when they grow up. However, young people in Galapagos can face barriers to accessing nature within the Galapagos National Park (GNP) due to both physical barriers (e.g. some sites only being accessible by boat) and financial constraints (prices are driven by tourism).

The GNP covers 97% of the Islands’ land area, and local communities live on the remaining 3%. To ensure more young people have opportunities to experience the incredible nature surrounding them, we have developed our Connecting with Nature programme in collaboration with the Charles Darwin Foundation and the GNP. Through this programme, we provide quality experiential environmental education opportunities and support teachers and their classes with engaging resources and outreach sessions in the field, with the aim of fostering a culture of sustainable living and environmental awareness. 

Our vision is one of a connected Galapagos community where there is not only a high awareness of conservation and sustainability issues, but where individuals and groups have the opportunities and support they need to take proactive steps to get involved with conservation action and sustainable living.

Anne Guézou, GCT's outreach coordinator in Galapagos
© Frances Eyre

How we’re tackling it

Through our Santa Cruz-based Outreach Coordinator, Anne Guézou, and our San Cristobal-based Oceans Outreach Coordinator, Leidy Apolo, at the Galapagos Science Center (GSC), we are able to create these opportunities at different stages throughout a young person’s life (from primary to undergraduate students) to ensure they can experience their islands’ incredible biodiversity. Although our primary target audience is young people, we aim to bring wider community benefits by engaging families too. 

We provide frequent and varied activities to connect young people with the unique ecosystems and wildlife on their doorstep, whilst providing education opportunities on key conservation issues. By offering a range of activities and support from an early age, we aim to solidify long-lasting connections to nature, whilst encouraging greater interest in conservation careers or higher education courses in marine science, ultimately building in-country capacity in these areas.

Engagement pathway diagram

Project goals

Goal 1: To improve accessibility to nature and the Galapagos National Park for Galapagos families. (AWARE & ENGAGED) 

Goal 2: To support teachers to enable their classes to connect with nature. (AWARE & ENGAGED) 

Goal 3: To provide hands-on extracurricular environmental education opportunities for young people to engage directly with conserving their environment. (ENGAGED & PRO-ACTIVE) 

Goal 4: To develop and promote citizen science projects for local people to get involved in scientific data collection and analysis. 

Goal 5: To develop outreach practitioners in Galapagos by supporting training and the sharing of resources and learnings to maximise engagement with conservation and behaviour change for sustainability. 

Goal 6: To improve communication channels between conservation stakeholders and local communities to increase the impact of outreach projects.

Darwin's finch feeding on seeds
© Grace Hunt

Project updates

Diana Pazmiño and the Gills Club (Chicas con Agallas)
26th Feb 2024
Education and outreach Women in science

Gills Club: Empowering young women in Galapagos

Gills Club (Chicas con Agallas) aims to engage more girls in shark science in Galapagos, and is supported by GCT as part of our education and outreach work.
Read more
Alberto the Waved Albatross front cover image
14th Nov 2023
Art and literature Education and outreach

Meet the woman who brought Alberto the Waved Albatross to life

We asked Lisa Brown, illustrator of 'Alberto the Waved Albatross', about her experience bringing the storybook to life and the importance of using art to inspire environmental action.
Read more
30th Jun 2023
Education and outreach Plastic pollution

An interview with marine biologist Dr Joanna Alfaro

We asked Dr Joanna Alfaro, Director of Pro Delphinus, a few questions about the impacts of plastic pollution that she's witnessed on wildlife, including waved albatross.
Read more
Alice Skehel
26th Jun 2023
Education and outreach Plastic pollution

An interview with marine biologist Alice Skehel

We asked marine biologist Alice Skehel about the threats that she’s witnessed to waved albatrosses during her research expeditions to Española island.
Read more

How you can help

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