| Title | Conserving penguins via land and sea protection |
|---|---|
| Contributor | Pablo Garcia Borboroglu(author) |
| Laura M. Reyes (author) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.11647/obp.0395.01 |
| Landing page | https://www.openbookpublishers.com/books/10.11647/obp.0395/chapters/10.11647/obp.0395.01 |
| License | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ |
| Copyright | Pablo Garcia Borboroglu; Laura M. Reyes; |
| Publisher | Open Book Publishers |
| Published on | 2025-01-30 |
| Long abstract | Pablo Garcia Borboroglu and Laura M. Reyes detail their work on Magellanic Penguins in Patagonia. Massive loss and alteration of key nesting rookeries due to coastal ranching led to dramatic declines in the number of nesting penguins. Initial efforts sought to discover and protect these rookeries. But the authors also found critical losses at sea when parents forage to provision their chicks. Solutions to these issues required not only good science, but clever integration with local land owners, fishers and government. |
| Page range | pp. 11–22 |
| Print length | 12 pages |
| Language | English (Original) |
Pablo is the founder and president of the Global Penguin Society. He is also a researcher at the National Research Council in Argentina, associate professor at the University of Washington, and the co-founder and co-chair of the IUCN Penguin Specialist Group. He has spent 34 years in the field of marine conservation, focusing on protected areas and seabird ecology and conservation, with special emphasis on penguins. Together with his team he has helped protect 32 million acres of ocean and coastal habitat for penguins.
He also works on marine conservation tools planning and implementation and in education, interacting with government agencies, communities, and multiple institutions. For example, he leads processes to help designate, plan, and implement marine and terrestrial protected areas.
He also recognizes that science communication is critical to improve the stewardship of the ocean and modify people’s attitudes and behaviour, so he works extensively with national and international media. He has been a scientific advisor to Paramount Pictures, Disney, BBC, CNN, National Geographic, among others.
Borboroglu studied biological sciences at the National University of Patagonia San Juan Bosco and received his Ph.D., with honors, in biology from the National University of Comahue in Argentina. He was a Duke University Global Fellow in Marine Conservation in 2001, he has received the Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation 2009, the Whitley Gold Award 2019, the National Geographic Buffet Award 2018, The Rolex Award for Enterprise 2019 and the Honor Recognition by the Congress of Argentina. He is also the winner of the 2023 Indianapolis Prize, the world’s leading animal conservation award.
Laura holds a Ph.D. in Biology from the National University of Patagonia "San Juan Bosco" in Argentina. Currently, she serves as the Director of Conservation at the Global Penguin Society. For over 25 years, Laura has held a professorship in Zoology and Animal Diversity at the University of Patagonia.
With more than two decades of dedicated experience, Laura specializes in the field of marine mammal ecology and conservation, focusing her efforts within the Patagonian region. Additionally, since the year 2000, Laura has also undertaken the role of a consultant, concentrating on the evaluation, participatory planning, and management strategies for coastal and marine natural areas. She has effectively coordinated and produced management plans for eight coastal natural areas. This collaborative work involves engagement with both private and state-owned entities, as well as interactions with landowners, communities, and government agencies.
Her multifaceted involvement underscores her unwavering commitment to fostering sustainable relationships between diverse stakeholders and the natural environment. Notably, her dedicated efforts have significantly contributed to the designation of 32 million acres of penguin habitat as protected areas.