'A lasting impact': Center for Galapagos Studies receives $600,000 to fund research

The UNC Center for Galapagos Studies received a $600,000 gift from the Royal Caribbean Group to fund three projects in the Galapagos Islands.

Deputy Director of the Center Kelly Weaver said the center had been planning ways to collaborate with the Royal Caribbean Group for over a year, saying that since the company operates ships in the Galapagos Islands, they decided it was important to fund the University’s research and preservation efforts there.

Weaver said that one of the funded projects, the Reactivating the Economy Through Science, Community and Work program, provides seed grants to local community members to create their own conservation initiatives addressing food security and sustainable agriculture. 

“We’re really excited about that, partnering with the community on those projects to provide them support,” Weaver said. “Also, with the kind of infrastructure that they need to be successful, aside from just money.” 

Interim Director of the Center Amanda Thompson said that the center will also be introducing a project called Barcode+, through which local residents and visitors to the Galapagos can learn how to use DNA sequencing to preserve native biodiversity and contribute to the science research on the islands.  

Weaver said that in the past, the center trained Galapagos natives on how to conduct barcoding techniques of genetic material on the islands — including plant, animal and water samples — as part of their original Barcode project. That project, she said, ran out of funds.

“Some of the funding from Royal Caribbean is going to restart that project so we can continue to do that work with local people and advancing science at the same time,” she said.

Weaver said the donation is also assisting students’ field experiences, providing six to eight undergraduate students with the opportunity to conduct research in the Galapagos at the Galapagos Science Center. A new cohort of students will be able to participate every summer for the next three years. 

Weaver said that the program doesn’t require any previous research experience for interested students.

“You just need to go in with an open mind, curiosity and a willingness to learn,” she said. “The goal is that you're going to be working alongside students from our partner institution, [Universidad San Francisco de Quito], and local collaborative students.”

UNC junior Lizzy Glazer said she spent last summer in the islands conducting cetacean acoustic research, analyzing the noises produced by animals to better understand communication methods. 

“I think that’s one of the main reasons for the Galapagos Science Center – to have our scientific knowledge be used to help protect animals and marine environments,” Glazer said. “We’re really lucky here at UNC to have a program that’s dedicated to that.”

Glazer said she feels fortunate to have had such a unique experience in the Galapagos Islands, saying she wants to continue exploring research projects in the future.

“This was a perfect opportunity for me to see what it would be like if that is the career path that I go down,” she said. “Also, I've been able to build connections with some really awesome researchers who I have been continuing work with.”

Funding is often a struggle for students who are interested in global research, but now, these opportunities will be more accessible through financial support, Weaver said.

She said that students can gain new knowledge in the Galapagos Islands that they can use to help communities facing similar challenges in North Carolina and the U.S.

Thompson said the Center hopes to build the citizen science research infrastructure in the Galapagos and provide students with transformative research experiences by working with scientists, people and places across the Islands.

“The local community is really important for what we do and for supporting us,” she said. “We really see ourselves as having a lasting impact there, and I think this funding in particular allows us to do each of those pieces.”

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CORRECTION: A previous version of this article stated that the Galapagos Science Center in the Galapagos was a UNC center. The Galapagos Science Center is a collaboration between UNC and the Universidad San Francisco de Quito. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for this error.