Galapagos Islands: Course Description
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Environmental Geography and Politics of the Galápagos Islands


This course is an interdisciplinary examination of the political, cultural, and environmental significance of the Galápagos Islands. Students will learn about this region through a combination of textual sources, direct instruction, and conducting field research in the Galápagos Islands. Students will live on a boat for 8 days and visit a number of the islands with Dr. Matt Zorn (Geography) and Dr. Jeff Roberg (Political Science). We will also spend a little time in and near Quito, the capital of Ecuador.
Please contact Professor Dr. Matthew Zorn or Dr. Jeffrey Roberg if you have further questions
The Galápagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands comprise a fragile ecosystem that is subject to increasing environmental stresses, especially from tourists. This J-Term trip to the Galápagos Islands and Ecuador will explore the political, economic, and ecological importance of the Galápagos Islands for the people of Ecuador and the world. The Galápagos Islands provide a natural experimental area to monitor the effects of global warming. From a climatic perspective, the Galápagos are located in the heart of the region of El Niño, which is well-known to induce abnormal climate anomalies in many regions of the world. El Niño brings an abnormal abundance of warm ocean water to the region,
disrupting the entire marine ecosystem of the eastern Pacific Ocean. This in turn has serious economic consequences for Ecuador (and much of coastal South America). Geologically, the Galápagos are volcanically and tectonically active as they are located along the boundary of lithospheric plates.

As one of the last remaining pristine areas of the world, the Galápagos Islands demonstrate the difficulties of balancing nature (endemic species), economics (a vast fishing industry), and the rights of tourists to explore the islands that Charles Darwin made famous by his journey on the HMS Beagle.
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