I think Galapagos is light years ahead of Nicaragua in terms of environmental education, awareness and conservation tourism. The tourist guides and park rangers are knowledgeable about the biological diversity and environment of the Galapagos. From my experience I can say that they follow the laws and they do their job well.

The National Park of Galapagos has a lot of money and this is one of the things that is lacking in Nicaragua, specially in the environmental protection side. Things run more smoothly because they have their own vehicles WITH gasoline and are well-staffed. The National Park also provides jobs for the local community with their projects. Of course I’ve heard that not all of their projects are the best and that they leave things midway or don’t follow through (The same happens in the station I was working in…maybe because they follow orders from the National Park?). I’m sure they could work more efficiently for US or European standards but for Latin America I think that the environmental entities in Galapagos are doing pretty well.

It’s also advantageous that scientists from all over the world are interested in conducting their research in these islands so there is a lot of good information which allows the National Park of Ministry of Agriculture to implement better projects. The Darwin Center, in the island of Santa Cruz, has classified most plant species as either: native, endemic, introduced or invasive, and they keep conducting crucial research on other species. Nicaragua needs more scientific information. A lot of the biological reserves are not well-staffed and in need of qualified people who can conduct proper research.

Something I mentioned before is that I would change the tourism policy of the Galapagos. I would require an environmental awareness workshop or some quiz or reading for all tourists who want to come to Galapagos. If the tourist is not happy with this, then he doesn’t come. Galapagos can afford to do this since they have such a high tourism rate. Nicaragua is still trying to increase tourism and there aren’t any restrictions for them either. I think that certain laws should be more strictly enforced so tourists are not allowed to buy property (specially beach front).

Galapagos has stricter laws on fishing, building codes, and laws on population control which Nicaragua doesn’t have at all. This is understandable because Galapagos is such a unique place but I feel that the islands should be used as a model for other places. Even though Nicaragua might not have as many endemic species or have a world natural heritage site, certain laws implemented in Galapagos would allow for a more sustainable use of natural resources.