Angelo Villagomez

Meeting with NOAA in 2024.  Conservation voices have a fraction the influence of fisheries voices in managing US oceans. Last year, my colleagues Kirsten Grorud-Colvert, Jenna Sullivan-Stack, Steven Mana’oakamai Johnson, and I published a short piece in Nature calling on philanthropy and NGOs to " Study protected waters newly opened up to fishing ." I publish the short article below in its entirety: In April, the United States opened up one million square kilometres of the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument to commercial fishing. Before then, for a decade, the region had been a marine protected area — in which all fishing was prohibited. Courts reclosed the area this August as part of an ongoing legal battle. Other protected areas, including the Papahānaumokuākea, Rose Atoll and Northeast Canyons and Seamounts marine national monuments, are under review (see go.nature.com/44Zambm). We urge research and philanthropic organizations to support scientific mon...

Additional reading: 5 Ways Scientists, NGOs, and Governments Can Support Indigenous-led Conservation The Trump administration argues that opening America’s seafloor to deep-sea mining is essential for strengthening our economy and securing our energy future. From a Pacific Islander perspective, this rush to extract metals from the ocean — especially near the Mariana Trench and American Samoa — ignores hard-earned lessons and risks repeating past mistakes. In many Pacific cultures, including my own Chamorro heritage, we navigate our world by “walking backwards into the future.” Pacific voyagers do this as they navigate across vast ocean spaces by reading the stars and waves. Hundreds or even thousands of miles from land, by looking behind the canoe to assess the direction and speed of the wake, they can determine where they’ve been, and this helps them know where they are going. Misreading a current could send a canoe hundreds of miles off course, which can be devastating when tryin...

I’m not a kelp guy . But a few years ago I was linked up with Aaron Eger and the Kelp Forest Alliance (KFA) and found myself invited to a working group on kelp restoration at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis  (NCEAS) in Santa Barbara, California. From Outsider to Co-Facilitator: A Global Kelp Forest Workshop Fast forward a few years, and we just met together for the third time, bringing together a global community of practice to explore the critical intersection of kelp forest ecology, cultural heritage, and contemporary conservation challenges. As a co-facilitator of the workshop now, I helped set the tone for a deeply collaborative and respectful dialogue centered on the unique expertise and long-standing kelp stewardship of Indigenous Peoples. The New Thesis for Durable Nearshore Conservation We collectively drew from our shared well of knowledge, and reflected on discussions and outputs from the first two years of meeting (We're not ready to...

Angelo and Marcela kick off the first Upwell in 2023 At a time when climate change, environmental degradation, and social inequality are increasingly intertwined, many young people are searching for spaces that connect their values with real‑world action. The Upwell conference was created to meet that moment—offering a forum where ocean and climate policy are discussed not only through a scientific or technical lens, but through the lived experiences of communities most affected. For students eager to understand how justice, policy, and environmental stewardship intersect, Upwell serves as both an introduction to the field and an invitation to help shape its future. REGISTER TO PARTICIPATE IN UPWELL ONLINE What Is the Upwell Conference? Upwell: A Wave of Ocean Justice is an annual conference and convening focused on equity, justice, and power in ocean and coastal policy. It brings together advocates, policymakers, researchers, Indigenous leaders, community organizers, and students t...

Following the last three years of overwhelming demand for Upwell programming, we are excited to convene the event in a larger venue and expand to a two day experience. Join us for both days to connect, learn, and shape what’s ahead together. WATCH UPWELL 2026 ONLINE The first day of Upwell, taking place on June 2 at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, DC, will focus on learning and networking for the Upwell community.  We have reserved 5 classrooms in the library's conference center and each room will host a series of interactive activities along specific tracks including, Youth Advocacy, Policy, and Career Development. The activities taking place in the Policy Track are organized by the Center for American Progress and the Ocean Defense Initiative.  I'm excited to share our panel discussion topics and our speakers.  Each panel will be 50 minutes long, with 25 minutes for a moderated discussion followed by 25 minutes of Q&A with the audienc...

Center for American Progress organized a symposium on "Beyond 30x30" at IMCC7 in Cape Town, South Africa in 2024 Abstract submissions are now open for the 8th International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC8 ), taking place November 13–17, 2026, in Edinburgh, Scotland—and we’re excited to announce an open symposium on deep‑sea mining. Titled “Between a Rock and a Deep Place: Science and Deep Sea Mining Policy,” this session will examine the science, ethics, and governance shaping one of the most consequential ocean debates of our time. Speakers will explore emerging research on deep‑sea ecosystems, environmental risks, and scientific uncertainty, alongside equity, Indigenous rights , and global policy dynamics, including ongoing International Seabed Authority negotiations. Researchers and practitioners interested in contributing are encouraged to submit abstracts by May 15, 2026. When submitting, select Open Symposia and choose the symposium title. Summary of topics to...

I was invited to participate in a panel on deep sea mining organized by the Society for Conservation Biology.  I gave these short remarks and then participated in an hour long panel discussion . Good afternoon, and thank you for the invitation to speak with you today. I want to thank SCB and especially David for organizing today’s workshop on deep sea mining. My name is Angelo and I work for an organization in Washington, DC called the Center for American Progress. I’m going to start my talk by saying something you don’t often hear at the start of a conference panel: I wish I didn’t need to be here today. I wish I didn’t have to think about deep sea mining. Two years ago, I was working closely with the American government, imagining what was possible in ocean conservation. I served on the federal advisory board making recommendations on area based management to the government and was on a national academy of sciences panel studying how to make ocean science more equitable...

Photo credit: NASA My island home was just walloped by Typhoon Sinlaku with 150 mph winds and as much as 25 inches of rain. My colleagues at CAP and I want to point out that, yes, now is the time to talk about climate change and just published a column: Climate Change Is Here—and America’s Most Marginalized Communities Are on the Front Lines . But I am safe in Washington, DC watching on my computer screen and phone. Our coalition partners with the Friends of the Mariana Trench on Saipan and Micronesia Climate Change Alliance in Guam, not to mention my friends and family across the islands, are living this disaster in real time and I want to share some ways that we can help them, and our community. Spread the Word One of the most important things you can do is to try to bring attention to the disaster with your social media. You can share the CAP article linked above, but you can also share reputable news coverage from national outlets, and you can amplify photos, stories, an...

I still remember the first time I watched Chasing Coral on Netflix almost ten years ago. Like many ocean advocates, I was transfixed. The visuals were stunning—time‑lapse coral bleaching, underwater photography that bordered on art, heroic scientists racing against time to document a crisis before it disappeared. The movie did what it was supposed to do: it made coral reefs feel immediate, fragile, and endangered. And yet, as the credits rolled, something felt wrong. It took me a while to put my finger on it, but eventually the discomfort resolved into a simple question: where were the people? Not the scientists. They were everywhere— wetsuits, GoPros, dramatic voiceovers about sacrifice and discovery. The people missing were the ones who live with coral reefs every day: the communities who fish them, pray with them, argue over them, and depend on them not just for livelihoods, but for identity. I remember talking to my friend and colleague Dr. Steven Manaʻoakamai Johnson about it. ...

The God Squad is using the self-inflicted Trump energy crisis to justify expanded Gulf drilling Without mentioning that hostilities were initiated by Israel and the Trump administration, Secretary Hegseth claimed that “recent hostile action” by the Iranian government has made expanded oil and gas drilling a national security imperative. He further argued that production in the Gulf of Mexico “provides a vital buffer, insulating our economy and military from foreign instability.” However, this claim of a national security imperative is baseless, relying on a series of mistruths. Hegseth’s justification is especially specious considering the Trump administration started the war with Iran and has been simultaneously causing global instability through tariffs, illegal wars, and moves that have undercut NATO. Hegseth suggested this action would “power our military and protect our nation,” but the U.S. Department of the Interior reports that offshore oil production is currently already at...

Peter Edwards, Olivia Lopez, Charitie Ropati, and Angelo Villagomez (left to right) at Upwell 2023 discussing metrics for Redefining Conservation Success I hope that you will join me at Upwell: A Wave of Ocean Justice this June 2-3 in Washington, DC. Please register today . Due to popular demand, Upwell is moving to a larger venue this year and we are adding a second day. We are holding this year's event at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library. Day one, held on June 2, has a focus on networking and learning, with four concurrent sessions arranged by theme taking place in classrooms at the MLK library. Day two will take place on June 3 in the MLK library auditorium, with panels, conversations, and plenary addresses. Day one is in-person only, whereas day two will have in-person and virtual options. As Upwell returns for its fourth year, you’re stepping into a conversation that has helped shape how the conservation movement thinks about people, place, and power. What began ...

I was invited to give the keynote talk at the 2026 Mariana Islands Conservation Conference. The organizers of the conference asked me to speak of my role in efforts to oppose deep sea mining near the Mariana Trench -- which I did -- but I also took the opportunity to talk about the history of the Mariana Trench marine national monument. Conservation Tales from the Mariana Trench Before I start I want to thank the board of Tano Tasi yan Todu for inviting me to speak today, and the organizers of this conference. I’ve watched this conference online over the years, and I’m very excited to participate for the first time. I also want to wish all of you a happy National Napping Day. Hopefully you won’t sleep through my talk. I also want to thank everyone who participated in the deep sea mining RFI these last few months. Thank you to brave activisists who spoke up first and raised the alarm. Thank you to the environmental organizations and the government servants who quickly educ...