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REVIEW article

Front. Conserv. Sci.
Sec. Human-Wildlife Interactions
Volume 5 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fcosc.2024.1351716
This article is part of the Research Topic Conflict Analysis, Resolution and Mediation in Biodiversity Conservation View all articles

Review of One Health in the Galápagos Islands (Part 2): Climate Change, Anthropogenic Activities, and Socioeconomic Sustainability

Provisionally accepted
Patricio A. Vega-Mariño Patricio A. Vega-Mariño 1,2*Isabel Jimenez Isabel Jimenez 3*Tamia Villacres Tamia Villacres 4Emma Houck Emma Houck 5*
  • 1 Agency for the Regulation and Control of Biosafety and Quarantine for Galapagos (ABG), Santa Cruz, Galápagos, Ecuador
  • 2 University of Extremadura, Badajoz, Spain
  • 3 Johns Hopkins Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, United States
  • 4 Other, Santa Cruz, Ecuador
  • 5 College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The Galápagos archipelago is a vast reservoir of terrestrial and marine biodiversity and is particularly susceptible to human, animal, and environmental impacts. Climate change, globalization, and the blurring of human-domestic animal-wildlife interfaces are poised to bring new threats and challenges to the region. A One Health perspective that simultaneously considers human, animal, and environmental health is imperative in assessing and mitigating the challenges facing the Galápagos Islands. Many challenges facing biodiversity in the Galápagos Islands can ultimately be linked to anthropogenic factors. In Part I of this review, we reviewed the impacts of invasive species and identified infectious diseases of importance. In Part II of this review, we discuss the impacts of climate change and ocean acidification, and highlight the effects of several direct anthropogenic activities, including tourism, overfishing, pollution, land use, and human-wildlife conflict. We also review the socioeconomic and political context of the Galápagos Islands, including current challenges in water and energy use, sanitation, and economic stability. We examine the importance of investment in local development for building resiliency and sustainability in the archipelago. Finally, we discuss the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the region. Throughout this two-part review, we build a cohesive picture of One Health in the Galápagos Islands by integrating past work, current needs, and emerging threats. We also consider overarching goals for conservation, ecosystem management, and socioeconomic sustainability that have been previously defined by both governmental and non-governmental stakeholders, and identify discrete, implementable, and interdisciplinary recommendations that will facilitate achievement of those goals.

    Keywords: Galapagos, One Health, Planetary health, wildlife, conservation, Endemic species, invasive species

    Received: 06 Dec 2023; Accepted: 30 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Vega-Mariño, Jimenez, Villacres and Houck. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Patricio A. Vega-Mariño, Agency for the Regulation and Control of Biosafety and Quarantine for Galapagos (ABG), Santa Cruz, Galápagos, Ecuador
    Isabel Jimenez, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, United States
    Emma Houck, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, 14853, New York, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.