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James P. Gibbs, Ph.D. is Distinguished Professor of Environmental and Forest Biology at the State University of New York's College of Environmental Science and Forestry, where he has served since 1997, and also currently serves as Vice President of Galápagos Conservancy (since 2023). He earned degrees from the University of Maine (B.S. with Distinction, 1986), the University of Missouri (M.A., 1988), and Yale University (Ph.D., 1995). Gibbs has held leadership roles including Director of the Roosevelt Wild Life Station at SUNY-ESF and senior appointments with Columbia University, Yale, and Ecuador's SENESCYT Prometeo Program. He has authored more than 240 peer-reviewed papers and several books, including Galápagos Giant Tortoises (2020), Fundamentals of Conservation Biology (2021, 4th ed.), and Amphibians and Reptiles of New York State (2007). His conservation and research leadership has been supported by more than $15M in grants from NSF, NASA, USAID, and others, with projects spanning the Galápagos, Amazonia, Mongolia, Siberia, Tanzania, and the U.S. He serves on the Boards of Island Conservation, the Fund for the Control of Invasive Species in Galápagos, and Fundación Conservando Galápagos. Dr. Linda J. Cayot has worked for Galapagos conservation for 40 years. She received her PhD on Galapagos giant tortoises from Syracuse University, New York, US. Dr. Cayot served as herpetologist at the Charles Darwin Research Station (CDRS) from 1988 to 1998. In 1997-98, she initiated Project Isabela, aimed at eradicating feral goats on northern Isabela Island. She worked for Galapagos Conservancy in the US from 2006 to 2019, where she played a lead role in the development of the Giant Tortoise Restoration Initiative. Washington Tapia Aguilera, Ph.D. is a conservation biologist and one of the foremost leaders in Galápagos restoration, with more than three decades of experience in research and management of protected areas. He earned his Ph.D. in Biodiversity and Environment from the University of Málaga (2024). Tapia has held senior leadership roles in Galápagos conservation, including Executive Director of the Galápagos National Park (2005-2006), Director of Conservation, Sustainable Development, and Research (2009-2012), and Director of Applied Research (2012-2014). From 2014 to 2025 he directed the Giant Tortoise Restoration Initiative for Galápagos Conservancy, pioneering rewilding efforts that have transformed conservation outcomes for these iconic species. Currently Tapia serves as CEO of Biodiversa Consultants, based in the Galapagos Islands, and continues to advise globally on biodiversity management and ecological restoration. |
