Island Conservation Vice President of Conservation Penny Becker, who joined Island Conservation in 2020, made an appearance today on conservationist Ben Goldsmith’s podcast Rewilding the World. 

Interviewing leaders of some of the most exciting and dramatic rewilding projects across the globe, Goldsmith’s podcast shares stories of hope and success as we envision a planet rich with sustainable, biodiverse ecosystems.  

The podcast, the first in Rewilding the World’s new season, gives Becker the opportunity to highlight a multitude of Island Conservation’s projects and ambitions. In particular, Becker describes research she published in 2022 with a cohort of international experts, building on recent studies and indigenous knowledge, finding that healthy terrestrial ecosystems have massive spillover effects for marine life. Native vegetation and birds create rich nutrient flows that make nearby corals grow four times faster and recover more fully and quickly from bleaching events. 

Especially important are connector species, such as crabs, seals, and seabirds, which live at the interface of land and sea. Becker explains on the podcast, “The seabirds were the ones who were consuming the herbivorous seashore invertebrates, like snails, limpets, things like that. And these intertidal eaters were the ones that were keeping that in check.” Strong populations of connector species are essential to stopping harmful algae overgrowth and promoting healthy reefs.

Becker further emphasizes the role of indigenous knowledge and community partnership in successful conservation.

“We need to be listening more to what all the native peoples who are on these islands for generations have known,” she contends. “These things are interconnected and you shouldn’t be thinking of them as separate. Islands and oceans are one ecosystem.” 

Among the successful Island Conservation projects Becker mentions on the podcast are the rehabilitation of the Pinzón Giant Tortoise’s habitat in the Galápagos, rewilding on Palmyra Atoll, and the return of Tufted Puffins to the renamed Hawadax Island. The podcast also includes an enthusiastic discussion of the recent use of drone technology to make island conservation more accessible and cost-effective. 

Finally, Becker describes Island Conservation’s mission to unite many people and stakeholders to rewild the world’s many vulnerable islands. The Island-Ocean Connection Challenge, launched in 2022, aims to achieve the ambitious goal of restoring at least 40 globally-significant island-ocean ecosystems by 2030.

“What we’re really trying to do … [with] the Island-Ocean Connection Challenge,” Becker explains, “is to get these governments and partners and organizations to be working together.” Collaboration is the key to a bright future for islands, oceans, and the world. 

Listen to the exciting interview on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.