The sea has long been a barrier guaranteeing the ecological isolation of the Galápagos. When Ecuador annexed the archipelago, the sea became an obstacle, because neither the state nor the island residents had ships to maintain regular relations with the mainland. On the contrary, the Galápagos Islands are an open space for foreign actors who, having adequate transport, freely use its natural resources and strategic location. At the end of the twentieth century, air travel overcame the oceanic distance and led to the unlimited development of maritime and land tourism in the archipelago’s protected areas. The needs of the Galápagos’ growing population are supplied by cargo ships and, through a process of ocean grabbing, its sea is exploited by various forms of tourism and export fishing. The sea is thus the main vector of the geographical opening of the Galápagos, a process characteristic of globalization that causes profound spatial, ecological, and social changes in a once isolated region.

中文翻译：

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开放空间与海洋掠夺：加拉帕戈斯群岛地理开口中的大海


长期以来，海洋一直是保证加拉帕戈斯群岛生态孤立的障碍。当厄瓜多尔吞并群岛时，海洋成为一个障碍，因为国家和岛上居民都没有船只来维持与大陆的正常关系。相反，加拉帕戈斯群岛是外国行为者的开放空间，他们拥有充足的交通工具，可以自由使用其自然资源和战略位置。20 世纪末，航空旅行克服了海洋距离，导致了群岛保护区的海上和陆地旅游的无限发展。加拉帕戈斯群岛不断增长的人口的需求由货船提供，通过海洋掠夺过程，其海洋被各种形式的旅游和出口捕鱼所开发。因此，海洋是加拉帕戈斯群岛地理开放的主要载体，这是全球化的一个特征，在一个曾经与世隔绝的地区导致了深刻的空间、生态和社会变化。