Godfrey Merlen
A Brief Bio...
I grew up in the world of Rachel Carson´s Silent Spring, the world of chemical farming, and the world of atomic power as the solution to all our energy problems. From the deck of a fishing boat out of Lowestoft, I counted the vessels dragging the sea floor and knew the resource was doomed. These impacts led me to spend most of my adult life in the Galapagos Islands where it is still possible to see and feel nature's patterns of sustainability.
The more I stayed, the more I was convinced that THIS world should survive. I work independently with the ministry of agriculture (Agrocalidad-Sicgal), the ministry of the environment (Galapagos National Park), the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF), and several NGOs to fight illegal fishing, to ensure the protection of the Marine Reserve, to control unsustainable development and especially in addressing the issue of introduced species, which theme I believe to be THE issue on which the biodiversity of Galapagos depends.
Today, I spend most of my time in efforts to recreate the oceanic barrier that separated Galapagos and the mainland, thus denying easy access to introduced species. I continue to work on the fumigation of aircrafts, the reduction of insect transport within the archipelago and from the mainland, and the will of people to help save Galapagos.
Finally I am delighted to associate myself with the Galapagos Conservation Trust (GCT), an organisation I see as proactive, sincere, and longsighted. A breath of fresh air.