Lindblad Expeditions has partnered with Island Conservation, an international not-for-profit organization, to raise funds for the tourism-dependent Galápagos Islands.

They established the Galápagos Island Relief Fund to help the people devastated by the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic .

Tourism accounts for more than 80 percent of the Galápagos economy. In the first two months of the pandemic, the islands’ economy lost $50 million, almost a quarter of the annual income.

The Galápagos Chamber of Tourism recently reported that visitors between July and October dropped a staggering 95 percent.

Donations received by the Galápagos Island Relief Fund will let Fundación Un Cambio Por La Vida (FUNCAVID), a local non-profit organization, give micro-loans to the people of the Galápagos.

The monies will provide immediate financial relief, address basic needs, let children stay in school and help sustainable businesses survive, grow and begin developing new income sources.

“The people of Galápagos are struggling more than I’ve seen in my 53-year relationship with the Islands,” said Sven Lindblad, founder and CEO of Lindblad Expeditions. “Stimulating the local economy through community micro-loans has the power to activate a thriving system — helping entrepreneurs and small-business owners develop new ideas to complement sustainable tourism, and meeting the needs of the local community long after the pandemic is over.”

The goal is to secure US$500,000. The organizations are reaching out to Lindblad guests who have traveled to Galápagos. The small-ship cruise line has set up a matching program, where every $1 donated (up to $50,000) will be matched three-to-one by a dollar-for-dollar donation from Sven and Kristin Lindblad’s Wanderlust Fund, Lindblad Expeditions and the Lindblad Expeditions Board of Directors.

“The Galápagos Island Relief Fund will enable Galápagos community members to further their education, create new businesses, and increase local food security — steps that are essential to building a more sustainable way of life on the islands, in which people and wildlife can thrive,” said Karl Campbell, Island Conservation’s executive director of Latin America.

Every dollar raised will stay in Galápagos. To donate or get more information, click here . Donations made through Island Conservation, a 501(c)3 charity, are tax deductible.