NOTE: THE NEXT OFFERING WILL BE IN 2014 AND WILL FOLLOW THE SAME PLAN AS THE 2012 VERSION. THE INFORMATION BELOW ABOUT THE PRIORITY LIST CAN NOW BE USED FOR 2014.
Chautauqua
Course DAY-25
Biodiversity in the Galapagos Islands
P. KELLY WILLIAMS, Department of Biology,
July 18-28, 2014 in Quito Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands
Note: See information near the end about the Priority List. Also see note below concerning physical and medical requirements for participants.
Would you be interested in touring the Galapagos Islands? This tropical ecosystem is spread along the equator more than 600 miles west of continental Ecuador. The Galapagos Islands are the volcanic archipelago that inspired Charles Darwin's theories of evolution and natural selection after he landed there in 1835 on the HMS Beagle. The remote islands provide a glimpse of the unique creatures and flora that Darwin called "a little world within itself." Darwin's theories discussed in "On the Origin of Species" flowed from his observation that the giant tortoises, iguanas, finches and other wildlife and plants on the remote islands were unique and even varied from island to island. He realized that the species must have originated somewhere, and they must have developed new characteristics over time to survive on the uninviting land masses. Also see the attached Galapagos Information. This one-time course will explore this fascinating place. It has the potential to be the trip of a lifetime. Adult companions are also welcome.
General Schedule
The Chautauqua course will begin on July 18, 2014 in Quito, Ecuador and end there on July 28. You should plan to arrive on July 17. Flights from the USA typically arrive in the evening. The nights of July 17, 18 and 19 will be in a hotel in Quito with touring options available on July 18 and 19. On Sunday July 20 the group will fly from Quito to the island of Baltra in the Galapagos. We will be picked up at the airport by the crew of the Yolita II motor yacht for 8 days 7 nights journey on the yacht. The Yolita II has double occupancy private bedrooms and bathrooms. See attachment. Lodging and meals will be provided onboard as the yacht motors from island to island. On Sunday July 27 the group leaves the yacht and flies back to Quito for hotel lodging that night. There will be a farewell dinner that evening in Quito. On July 28 the course ends and people will fly home, or go on to other plans they may have made.
Course Director and Guide
The Course Director is Dr. Kelly Williams. Dr. Williams is Professor of Biology at the University of Dayton where his research interests have focused on the conservation biology of mole salamanders. In 2009 Dr. Williams and a geology colleague from UD taught a month long undergraduate course entitled "Environments of Ecuador." The culmination of that course was a week long cruise on the Yolita II. In 2012 he offered a Chautauqua course on the same yacht. He is familiar with the crew and the professional guide. In addition he can advise you on expeditions to the Amazon basin and the Andes. Ecuador has a remarkable fauna and flora and a vibrant indigenous population. Each year since 2005 Dr. Williams has taken students to Ecuador for service and cultural immersion. Additionally he has over 20 years experience offering some 30 Chautauqua courses with titles such as Ecology of the Rockies, Ecology and Geology of the Colorado Front Range, Geology and Ecology of the Colorado Western Slope, Marine Fauna and Communities on the Big Island of Hawaii, and Hawaiian Marine Biology. He has similar experience with numerous offerings of field courses for college students in Colorado, Florida, Hawaii and the Galapagos. The Galapagos National Park Service will also provide a local bilingual naturalist guide for the cruise.
Approximate Costs
The overall cost will be approximately $4300 per person. This includes the cruise with lodging and meals [8 days and 7 nights], Galapagos National Park fees, flights from Quito to the islands and back, 4 nights hotel double occupancy in Quito (at Hotel Finlandia or similar) with breakfast and dinner, round trip airport transfers, and tours of the Central Historic District in Quito and and a day long tour to an indigenous market in Otavalo. Not included is your flight to and from Ecuador from the USA, exit tax for Ecuador, hotel tips, extra lodging fees for single occupancy in Quito, wet suit rental on the Yolita II, and any alcoholic beverages on the Yolita II.
Physical and Medical Requirements for Participants
Eight days of this trip will be onboard a 115 foot yacht with compact accomodations. Participants must have sufficient mobility to deal with this environment. Also the Galapagos Islands are relatively isolated from conventional medical care. Medical care in the Galapagos Islands is extremely limited. There are no facilities for acute cardiac or surgical care. Those with serious illnesses must be evacuated to the Ecuadorian mainland or the United States for treatment. Those with medical situations which could require rapid intervention should not participate. Consult your doctor.
Application Logistics
With this initial announcement we invite those who have serious interest in this course to get on our Priority List for the course [See the next section]. After we see the initial response, we will send out invitations to apply for the course. We expect the applications to be due November 1, along with a $1000 deposit for each person. This deposit will be returned in full if the course does not run. We expect to have the exact final cost by that time. The remaining fee of approximately $3300 would be due March 1. Because of the significant up front payments due and the need to fill the course to make the economics work, these fees will be non-refundable once an appointment is made. It is essential that those who sign up purchase travel insurance for protection against any need they may have to drop out after payment is made. One possible insurer is TravelGuard (travelguard.com). [Please note: We have no connection to TravelGuard, do not guarantee them, or receive anything from them. We have limited acceptable experience with them.] Another option recommended by the agency that books these trips is Travel Insured (travelinsured.com). [The agency, Holbrook Travel, has dealt with Travel Insured for some 20 years and has "never had a problem."] You should also check other travel insurers and compare. You select your dollar amount and they will give you a quote which is age dependent. Read the fine print.
To Get on the Priority List
Since we have no idea about the interest level in this course, and because we have an absolute limit of 15 participants, we need to establish a priority list. To do this we will ask you to tell us as soon as possible by email if you have serious interest in this course. We will keep track of the arrival times of these emails, and use that as the priority list. As soon as possible send me an email [miner@udayton.edu] with "Galapagos" in the title line, and "serious interest" in the message. If you are thinking of coming with a companion, include that information and the companion's full name. At this point this is not a financial commitment; we will ask for a deposit by the November 1 application deadline.
Finally
This course is longer and more expensive that our typical inexpensive short course. As a result we feel that we need to operate in a different way for this one; we need to assess participant interest early and have a firm November 1 deadline. We have the yacht reserved and must pay a substantial deposit by the end of the year. And participants need to know early if they are going on this trip so they can make their plans and arrangements. Since there is no external funding, we know of no way to offer this experience other than with the harsh non-refundable fees. We note that this approach is rather common with other agents for this type of course. We hope you understand. If you have questions, please email me [miner@udayton.edu]. It would be great to hear from you!
For college teachers of: all science disciplines.
The course will be offered at a general level. Prerequisites:
none.
Costs for 2014
Application fee: $1000 [Due November 1, 2013]
Course fee: around $3300 [Due March 1, 2014]
The above costs include eleven nights of lodging, most meals, round trip airfare between Quito and the Galapagos, airport transfers, and tours.