Foto © Dirección del Parque Nacional Galápagos
Equipo de Galápagos


Washington Tapia
General Director
Washington (Wacho) Tapia is the Galápagos-based General Director. A Galápagos native and reptile expert with decades of field experience, Wacho has been working for Galápagos conservation since volunteering at the tortoise and land iguana breeding and rearing centers at the Charles Darwin Research Station following high school. He completed his graduate thesis on the giant tortoises of Cinco Cerros on southern Isabela Island under the supervision of Dr. Cayot. He then worked for the Galápagos National Park Directorate for 15 years, leading their science program and technical group. In April 2014, Wacho joined the staff of Galápagos Conservancy to direct the GTRI. His work involves constant collaboration with the Galápagos National Park Directorate. He coordinates and leads all fieldwork and plays a vital role in ecosystem conservation work in Galápagos.
Washington Tapia
General Director
Conservando Galápagos


Dr. Jorge Carrión
Director of Conservation
Dr. Jorge Carrión joined Galápagos Conservancy in May 2021 to oversee our rewilding programs. Jorge worked for the Galápagos National Park Directorate (GNPD) from 2012 to 2020, including a two-year term as Director from 2018 to 2020 during which he oversaw all aspects of the management of the Galápagos National Park and Galápagos Marine Reserve. Concurrently with his GNPD role, he managed migratory species protection efforts as Secretary of the Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Corridor. Jorge holds a PhD in conservation biology from the Universidad de Sevilla in Seville, Spain, and was a professor at the Central University of Ecuador in Galápagos.
Dr. Jorge Carrión
Director of Conservation
Conservando Galápagos


Willians Castro
Galápagos Conservation Assistant
Willians Castro brought with him 30 years of operations and logistics experience when he joined Galápagos Conservancy in 2017. We benefit from his experience gained in 12 years with Ecuadorian civil aviation in Guayaquil before being recruited as head of maintenance for the Charles Darwin Foundation, a post he held for 12 years, later managing the largest Galápagos taxi cooperative for four years as well as his own small scale enterprises in catering, equipment sales and as a qualified electrician. If it needs fixing or sorting out, there is only one person to call: Willians Castro. Between Willians, his wife and their adult children in professional posts in Galápagos, the support network available to Galápagos Conservancy in the Islands and mainland Ecuador is incomparable.
Willians Castro
Galápagos Conservation Assistant
Conservando Galápagos


Xavier Castro
Environmental Journalist
Xavier Castro is the journalist for Galápagos Conservancy. With a bachelor’s in social communication, Xavier has more than 20 years of experience in writing and reporting on conservation and sustainable development in the Galápagos Islands. He has developed and implemented communication strategies for the Galápagos National Park, the Galápagos Governing Council, Communication Secretariat of the Ecuadorian Government, as well as various NGOs and International Cooperation Agencies from Spain and Japan like Araucaria and JICA. He specializes in the design of communication strategies, environmental journalism, audiovisual production, photography, filmmaking and graphic design. His passion is to contribute to creating a well-informed society aware of the fragility of the Galápagos ecosystems, and using his communications experience and skills to promote a sustainable and environmentally friendly lifestyle.
Xavier Castro
Environmental Journalist
Conservando Galápagos


Walter Chimborazo
Field Assistant
Walter Chimborazo has worked as a field assistant since 2015. His primary responsibility is to collaborate in the management of the Fausto Llerena Giant Tortoise Breeding Center on Santa Cruz Island with the Galápagos National Park Directorate. A native galapagueño, Walter has demonstrated great dedication and patience in working with giant tortoises over the years. He follows in the footsteps of his father, Alfredo Chimborazo, who worked in the Santa Cruz tortoise center for more than a decade in the 1980s and 1990s.
Walter Chimborazo
Field Assistant
Conservando Galápagos


Cristian Gil Jaramillo
Technical Assistant
Cristian Gil Jaramillo, born in the Galápagos, graduated in Environmental Science from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. As part of his thesis, Cristian studied the terrestrial invertebrate collection at the Charles Darwin Research Station. Then in May 2022 Cristian joined Galápagos Conservancy with the goal of helping manage giant tortoises at the Arnaldo Tupiza Breeding Center on Isabela Island. He strongly believes that fostering an island culture is the key to achieving harmony between the environment and the people of Galápagos.
Cristian Gil Jaramillo
Technical Assistant
Conservando Galápagos


Judith Moreira
Administrative Assistant
Judith Moreira has a degree in Commerce and Administration Sciences and has worked for the Galápagos National Park as Financial Assistant and later with the Charles Darwin Foundation in the Accounting department and support in the Archive and itineraries area. She firmly believes that Galápagos is a paradise, that it is a privilege and responsibility to live on the islands, and that it is critical to take care of them and keep them unique. She is now part of the staff of the Galápagos Conservancy to support administrative activities that allow scientists to carry out their conservation work on the unique species of the Islands.
Judith Moreira
Administrative Assistant
Conservando Galápagos


Ivonne Torres
Conservation Center Coordinator
Ivonne has been in love with the Galápagos Islands since she was a child. She is a tourism specialist. The islands and their protection have led her to work as a naturalist guide, being able to communicate to our visitors the importance of Galápagos and preserving it as one of the most unique places of the world. Her experience is varied. The Charles Darwin Foundation hired her as a liaison between the scientific and tourism sectors of the islands, allowing her to show the importance of science for conservation. She also worked, for several years, as Director of Sustainable Development for the City of Santa Cruz, Galápagos. This gave her the opportunity to work hands-on with the Fishing, agricultural and tourism sectors and their role on the sustainable balance of the islands. Now Ivonne has joined the team as the Coordinator for our Conservation Center in Galápagos.
Ivonne Torres
Conservation Center Coordinator
Conservando Galápagos


Gabriela Vivas
Director of Operations
Gabriela is an economist and joined the Galápagos Conservancy team in November 2021 as the Operations Manager, directly supporting the coordination of local activities in Galápagos. She worked for the Galápagos National Park Directorate from 2013 to 2018, serving as Administrative Financial Manager (2013-2015) and Director of the Isabela Technical Operational Unit (2016-2018); and for Island Conservation in the execution of the GEF Project “Safeguarding Biosecurity in the Galápagos Islands” (2019-October 2021), a project that developed support activities for the Ecological Restoration Project on Floreana Island prior to its implementation. In the GEF project, she started as a Technical-Financial Assistant and later became a Restoration Specialist, which allowed her to acquire knowledge in the development of projects related to conservation and become more involved in the work of Galápagos Conservancy in the Galápagos Islands as a co-executor of the GEF project.
Gabriela Vivas
Director of Operations
Conservando Galápagos


Barbara Arizaga
Communications Manager
Barbara Arizaga joined the Galápagos Conservancy in June 2022 with the intention of contributing to the global awareness of the distinctive ecological and social circumstances of the Galápagos Archipelago and of involving the general public and donors in the work of the Conservancy itself through written and visual storytelling on the Conservancy’s website and various social media platforms. Barbara came to us from Ecuador where she worked in the academic, political and non-profit sectors by producing a wide range of digital and printed communications. Barbara has a degree in Intercultural Communications, a Minor in Nonprofit Administration, and a passion for introducing people to the wonders of nature. Barbara’s ultimate goal is to keep spreading her enthusiasm and love for conservation to anyone who will listen in the hopes that he can assist in safeguarding this green planet for a very long time.
Barbara Arizaga
Communications Manager
Conservando Galápagos
Coordinadora de la Iniciativa para la Restauración de las Tortugas Gigantes (GTRI): Dr. Linda J. Cayot
La Dra. Linda Cayot ha trabajado para la conservación de Galápagos por más de 35 años. Ella primero fue a Galápagos en 1981 para estudiar tortugas gigantes para su Ph.D. en la Universidad de Syracuse. Ella ha permanecido involucrada con las islas desde entonces. Linda sirvió como herpetóloga de la Estación Científica Charles Darwin (ECChD) desde 1988 hasta 1998, tiempo durante el cual supervisó los programas de crianza en cautiverio de tortugas gigantes e iguanas terrestres, trabajó extensivamente con el Solitario George — el último miembro de la especie de tortuga Chelonoidis abingdonii de la isla Pinta, y supervisó a estudiantes ecuatorianos que estudiaban los reptiles endémicos de Galápagos, entre otras cosas. En su último año con la ECChD, Linda coordinó el inicio del exitoso Proyecto Isabela, con la meta de liberar Isabela y otras islas de cabras salvajes. Ha trabajado como Asesora Científica de Galápagos Conservancy desde 2008. Linda facilitó el taller internacional de tortugas gigantes de Galápago en 2012, que resultó en el lanzamiento de la Iniciativa para la Restauración de las Tortugas Gigantes (GTRI, por sus siglas en inglés) en 2014.
Director de la Iniciativa para la Restauración de las Tortugas Gigantes (GTRI): Washington Tapia
Washington (Wacho) Tapia es el director de la GTRI (por sus siglas en inglés) con sede en Galápagos. Es un nativo de Galápagos y experto en reptiles con décadas de experiencia en el campo. Wacho ha estado trabajando para la conservación de Galápagos desde que realizó su voluntariado en los centros de crianza de tortugas e iguanas terrestres en la Estación Científica Charles Darwin después de terminar el colegio. Realizó su tesis de posgrado sobre las tortugas gigantes de Cinco Cerros en el sur de la isla Isabela bajo la supervisión de la Dra. Cayot. Luego trabajó para la Dirección del Parque Nacional Galápagos (DPNG) durante 15 años, liderando su programa de ciencias y su grupo técnico. En abril de 2014, Wacho se unió al staff de Galápagos Conservancy para dirigir la GTRI. Su trabajo incluye una colaboración constante con la DPNG. Él coordina y lidera los trabajos de campo de la GTRI y desempeña un papel vital en el trabajo de conservación de los ecosistemas de Galápagos.
Científico adjunto: Dr. James P. Gibbs
El Dr. James Gibbs ha estado involucrado en investigaciones en las Islas Galápagos desde 1981, cuando sirvió como voluntario en los proyectos de Pinzones de Darwin de Peter y Rosemary Grant, durante muchos meses en la Isla Daphne y luego por muchos meses en la isla Genovesa. Más de 60 viajes a Galápagos más tarde, James es ahora colíder (con Wacho Tapia y Linda Cayot) de la Iniciativa para la Restauración de las Tortugas Gigantes, supervisando el programa de investigación detrás de la restauración de las tortugas, así como asesorando sobre otros temas como el monitoreo ecológico y las inversiones en investigación. Es Profesor Distinguido en la Universidad Estatal de Nueva York de la Facultad de Ciencias Ambientales y Forestales en Syracuse, donde enseña cursos de Biología de la Conservación y Herpetología. El Dr. Gibbs tiene un Ph.D. de la Universidad de Yale, un M.Sc. de la Universidad de Missouri, y un B.S. de la Universidad de Maine. Se ha desempeñado orgullosamente como “Viejo Sabio” con el programa Prometeo de la Secretaría Nacional de Educación Superior, Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación del Ecuador (2012-2014). Además de trabajar en Galápagos, ha trabajado extensivamente en proyectos de conservación en muchas otras partes del mundo, incluyendo Tanzania (anfibios en peligro de extinción), Rusia (leopardos de las nieves y argali) y Brasil (tortugas de río).
Asistente Técnico de la Iniciativa para la Restauración de las Tortugas Gigantes: Jonathan Cueva
Jonathan Cueva se unió a Galápagos Conservancy como asistente técnico de la GTRI (por sus siglas en inglés) en 2018. Jonathan completó recientemente sus estudios universitarios en biología en Loja, su ciudad natal. Antes de unirse al equipo de la GTRI, trabajó durante dos temporadas en el Proyecto del Pinzón de Manglar, pasando su tiempo en el campo en la costa occidental de la isla Isabela. Su experiencia de campo en el Ecuador continental incluye el monitoreo de especies emblemáticas, incluyendo, entre otros, el oso de anteojos (Tremarctos ornatus) y el culpeo o zorro andino (Lycalopex culpaeus). Jonathan colabora en todos los aspectos técnicos, científicos y logísticos de la GTRI, con énfasis en los viajes de campo y visitas regulares de supervisión a los centros de crianza de tortugas de la DPNG.
Asistente de Campo de la Giant Tortoise Restoration Initiative: Walter Chimborazo
Walter trabaja como asistente de campo de la GTRI desde el 2015, teniedo como su responsabilidad principal colaborar en el manejo del Centro de Crianza de Tortugas Gigantes Fausto Llerena en la isla Santa Cruz. Es galapagueño y además de hacer muy bien su trabajo, tiene una dedicación y paciencia notable para trabajar con tortugas, probablemente debido a que constituye la segunda generación de cuidadores de tortugas en cautiverio, pues su padre Alfredo Chimborazo, también trabajó por más de una década colaborando en el manejo del Centro de Crianza.