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| Galapagos |
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| Meet Our Expedition Leaders |
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Please note: Due to unforeseen circumstances, staff schedules may change.
| CARLOS ROMERO FRANCO Expedition Leader Carlos was born in Quito, Ecuador. He grew up and attended elementary and secondary school in Venezuela. Carlos returned to Quito to study Biology and specialized in the Fauna of Ecuador. His main field of study was Zoology with particular emphasis on vertebrates. He has what is often deemed a very peculiar favorite: bats and he has become a self-trained specialist in this unusual field. Carlos has taken part in various scientific projects and expeditions with the Biological Sciences Department of Quito’s Polytechnic University. He has published several scientific papers, including one about the bats of Galápagos and one about the vampire bat on mainland Ecuador. Read more
In the near future, in his free time, Carlos will be working in various scientific projects in Ecology, Genetics and Distribution of various vertebrate species. Carlos's hobbies include drawing: he has illustrated various scientific papers, including the "Park Warden Manual," used in all the National Parks in Ecuador since 1991. Carlos also studied languages at college, and is fluent in Spanish, English and German. He speaks some French. His interest in conservation biology inspired him to become a Naturalist. He worked for five years in the National Parks of the Ecuadorian rainforest, and since 1997 has been working as a Naturalist in the Galápagos Archipelago. He has a Masters in Ecotourism and Natural Protected Areas Management with Quito’s Technological University. Carlos also has a Doctorate in Biology. He designed a new career for the largest University in Ecuador, the Central University. The new career is a Masters in Environmental Management and Administration of Natural Protected Areas. This new career will help to produce qualified professionals who will be prepared technically and academically to lead the conservation efforts in this beautiful and diverse country. Carlos was recently honored by National Geographic Expeditions; he is now a National Geographic Expert for the Galapagos Islands. |
| DAVID PICKAR Video Chronicler David Pickar is a native of Portland, Oregon. He studied anthropology at the University of Oregon, then spent several years working as a field archaeologist. Participating in excavations in countries like Jordan, Belize and Italy and in every corner of the US, allowed him to witness culture and the environment from an unusual perspective. Read more
It was a desire to tell some of these stories, along with a life-long love of photography that led him to the business of film. At the Seattle Film Institute he participated in an intensive film-immersion program. Soon he was at work as the director of photography on a feature-length documentary about sustainable living. That film, ‘Mama Earth’, has gone on to screen in numerous festivals around the country and was included in a nationally syndicated PBS TV series. Starting in 2005 David specialized in films for parks and public lands with the Seattle firm Camera One. Shooting assignments have taken him around the country filming everything from wolves and grizzly bears in Alaska’s Denali National Park to rare birds and nesting sea turtles on South Carolina’s barrier Islands to the stoic, red-stone monuments of Utah’s Arches National Park. He is an experienced editor and script-writer and is also skilled in video graphics and special-effects. |
| FERNANDO SANCHEZ Staff Fernando Sanchez was born in Quito, Ecuador in 1981. He completed his schooling in Quito and then moved to the Galapagos. The Islands have always been a magical place for him since his grandparents have lived on San Cristobal Island for over 37 years. Fernando remembers when he was a child spending every vacation visiting his family and exploring the environment full of unique flora and fauna. Read more
After being a volunteer with the Charles Darwin Research Station for some months and participating in some conservation projects with them, Fernando took the training with the National Park and the San Francisco of Quito University to become a Naturalist Guide; he has been a naturalist for seven years. Fernando’s passion for extreme sports led him to become a surfer and take the training with the National Park to become a Surf Guide; he is also a PADI Open Water Diver; and has had the chance to travel around Ecuador doing extreme sports. Fernando participated in a project along with the National Park to study the limnology of a fresh water lagoon located on San Cristobal Island, and is currently in his fifth year of university to get a degree on Administration, one of his goals is to get a specialization on Sustainable Development and Management of National Parks. The opportunity of coming from a polluted city to a paradise like Galapagos made Fernando see the importance of starting to work towards the conservation of the world’s natural areas. |
| MARIBEL ARROBA Wellness Specialist Maribel was born in the beautiful city of Quito, where she grew up surrounded by volcanoes. After graduating from high school in Ecuador, she moved to Barcelona, Spain. She resided there for two years and developed an early interest in aromatherapy. It wasn't until returning to Ecuador that she was first introduced to the Galapagos. Read more
The islands had such an impact on Maribel that she stayed and has spent the last 25 years living in paradise and being connected to nature. She's had the opportunity to return to Spain, Mexico, and Ecuador’s mainland on many occasions to attend workshops on various wellness techniques. She's developed an expertise in such techniques, as Swedish massage, reflexology, acupressure, as well as holistic healing, aromatherapy and magnet therapy. For the last seven years, she has enjoyed the opportunity to help people through this practice and looks forward to sharing her love of the Galapagos with travelers from around the globe. |
| ANTONIO ADRIAN Staff Antonio is Ecuadorian, although he was assembled in Europe. He’s worked as a Naturalist at the Galapagos National Park since 1994. He studied natural sciences (Chemistry, Physics and Biology) in a boarding school in England for two years, then he spent four years in medical school in Spain (out of boredom he dropped out, like Darwin, he wanted to see the World and he has). Read more
He likes writing and he has published two natural history books: an original approach to learning Astronomy without charts, Easy Stars, and a natural history guide for the Galapagos Islands, The Galapagos Phat Guide, as well as articles and essays on evolution, conservation and nature interpretation. He has guided for a year in the Sonora Desert and trained over a hundred nature interpreters in Arizona. He believes that humor and non-formal education are very valid tools to teach about the greater world. In his free time he works on educational projects for the Galapagos, through his own foundation, Fundación Vulcano. His personal assets are a bike, a hammock and lots of free time with his girlfriend and kids. Following Darwin's example, his goal is to grow a long white beard and change the world (whichever comes first). |
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