In this launch of the Galapagos series, this book provides a broad "framing" assessment of the current status of social and ecological systems in the Galapagos Islands, and the feedback that explicitly links people to the environment. It also highlights the challenges to conservation imposed by tourism in the Galapagos Islands and the attendant migration of people from mainland Ecuador to service the burgeoning tourism industry. Further, there is an emphasize on the status of the terrestrial and marine environments that form the very foundation of the deep attraction to the Islands by...

This volume is a collection of the some of the most significant lectures that well-known experts presented at our two international "summits on evolution" (2005, 2009) as updated and revised chapters. The meetings took place on one of the large islands of the Galapagos archipelago (San Cristobal) at GAIAS (Galapagos Institute for the Arts and Sciences) of the Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ), Ecuador.​ The main goal of the two Galapagos Summits on Evolution has been to bring together scientists and graduate students engaged in the study of evolution, from life's origin to its...

This book focuses on how marine systems respond to natural and anthropogenic perturbations (ENSO, overfishing, pollution, tourism, invasive species, climate-change). Authors explain in their chapters how this information can guide management and conservation actions to help orient and better manage, restore and sustain the ecosystems services and goods that are derived from the ocean, while considering the complex issues that affect the delicate nature of the Islands. This book will contribute to a new understanding of the Galapagos Islands and marine ecosystems.​

This volume is a collection of the some of the most significant lectures that well-known experts presented at our two international "summits on evolution" (2005, 2009) as updated and revised chapters. The meetings took place on one of the large islands of the Galapagos archipelago (San Cristobal) at GAIAS (Galapagos Institute for the Arts and Sciences) of the Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ), Ecuador.​ The main goal of the two Galapagos Summits on Evolution has been to bring together scientists and graduate students engaged in the study of evolution, from life's origin to its...

The book explores how Darwins legendary and mythologized visit to the Galapagos affected the socioecosystems of the Islands, as well as the cultural and intellectual traditions of Ecuador and Latin America. It highlights in what way the connection between Darwin and the Galapagos has had real, enduring and paradoxical effects in the Archipelago. This Twenty Century construct of the Galapagos as the cradle of Darwin s theory and insights triggered not only the definition of the Galapagos as a living natural laboratory but also the production of a series of conservation practices and the...

This book focuses on how marine systems respond to natural and anthropogenic perturbations (ENSO, overfishing, pollution, tourism, invasive species, climate-change). Authors explain in their chapters how this information can guide management and conservation actions to help orient and better manage, restore and sustain the ecosystems services and goods that are derived from the ocean, while considering the complex issues that affect the delicate nature of the Islands. This book will contribute to a new understanding of the Galapagos Islands and marine ecosystems.​

This book provides the first collection of chapters written by scientists who have contributed to the understanding of disease ecology in the Galapagos Islands, an iconic and historic natural site. The Galapagos Archipelago straddles the equator in the eastern Pacific Ocean, almost 1000 km off the coast of Ecuador, and includes 13 major islands, numerous smaller satellite islands, and many more even smaller islets. The wildlife on the Galapagos Islands today represents one of the best-preserved wild communities of plants and animals in the world, owing to the location of the islands at the...

This book investigates the introduction of invasive species and their behavior in oceanic islands. How can we define invasive species? What is their history? How did they come to dominate and transform ecosystems? These are relevant questions when trying to understand the behavior of invasive species--primarily in fragile ecosystems such as islands--and to understand the biological, ecological, social and economic impacts of invasions.
We chose the Galapagos Islands, a place well-known to be unique in the study of evolution, as a laboratory to analyze the interactions between invasive and...

The purpose of this book is to present a range of cases and comparison of the issues, insights and cases emerging from the Sustainable Energy Mix Summit in the Galapagos that offer a better understanding of energy mix in fragile environments from a variety of International locations and contexts including the Galapagos.