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Angelo Villagomez is a conservation leader from the Mariana Islands whose work bridges Indigenous knowledge and Western science to protect the ocean and empower communities. Born in a village on an island next to the Mariana Trench, Villagomez has spent over two decades advocating for ocean justice, elevating Indigenous governance, and reshaping global conservation frameworks to center equity and cultural resilience.
Currently a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, Villagomez leads efforts to advance Indigenous-led conservation in the United States and across the Pacific. His approach blends ancestral wisdom with policy expertise, challenging extractive models and promoting reciprocal protection of marine ecosystems. He is a prominent voice against climate colonialism and deep-sea mining, and a champion for nearshore conservation that benefits both nature and people.
Villagomez previously spent 14 years at The Pew Charitable Trusts, where he helped designate and expand national marine monuments in the Pacific Islands and led global shark conservation campaigns. He played a key role in securing international advice to define industrial fishing and to protect at least 30% of the ocean in fully or highly protected areas, contributing to The MPA Guide and the IUCN MPA Standards.
Throughout his career, Villagomez advocated for Indigenous representation in global marine policy. He has worked with organizations including the League of Conservation Voters, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Mariana Islands Nature Alliance. He is known for his strategic storytelling, creative engagement, and ability to mobilize diverse coalitions—from grassroots communities to international bodies.
Currently a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, Villagomez leads efforts to advance Indigenous-led conservation in the United States and across the Pacific. His approach blends ancestral wisdom with policy expertise, challenging extractive models and promoting reciprocal protection of marine ecosystems. He is a prominent voice against climate colonialism and deep-sea mining, and a champion for nearshore conservation that benefits both nature and people.
Villagomez previously spent 14 years at The Pew Charitable Trusts, where he helped designate and expand national marine monuments in the Pacific Islands and led global shark conservation campaigns. He played a key role in securing international advice to define industrial fishing and to protect at least 30% of the ocean in fully or highly protected areas, contributing to The MPA Guide and the IUCN MPA Standards.
Throughout his career, Villagomez advocated for Indigenous representation in global marine policy. He has worked with organizations including the League of Conservation Voters, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Mariana Islands Nature Alliance. He is known for his strategic storytelling, creative engagement, and ability to mobilize diverse coalitions—from grassroots communities to international bodies.
Villagomez holds degrees in biology from the University of Richmond and environmental policy from Rollins College. He is a scuba diver, a self-proclaimed mediocre ukulele player, and a passionate advocate for the cultural and ecological integrity of island nations.
Whether developing campaigns, mentoring emerging leaders, or co-founding and organizing Upwell: A Wave of Ocean Justice to make conservation accessible, Villagomez continues to redefine what ocean leadership looks like. His work is rooted in legacy—honoring mentors like Cinta Kaipat and his father Ramon G. Villagomez—and driven by a commitment to uplift Indigenous voices, protect sacred waters, and inspire a new generation of ocean avengers.
MEDIA
Profiles
- Underwater Overseer, Rollins 360
- Charting a New Course for Ocean Conservation, UR Now
- Redefining Conservation with Angelo Villagomez, As Spiders Do: From the University of Richmond Alumni Office
Indigenous led Conservation
- To Conserve the Ocean, Start With the People Who Live There, Center for American Progress
- Under the Pala Pala, Center for American Progress
- When Indigenous Rights, Conservation, and a Very Lucrative Fishery Collide, Sierra
- The New Taboos, Nautilus Magazine
- Tide Turning As Indigenous Groups Help Steer Global Effort To Save Oceans, Radio France International
- The Pentagon Wants to Bomb the Hell Out of This Tiny Pacific Island, Huffington Post
Marine Protected Areas
- Marine Protected Areas, Explained, Hakai Magazine
- America's Best Idea to Protect Its Ocean Has One Big Problem: It's Not Working, Vox
- We've Only Really Protected 2% of the Ocean, Earther
- Meet the Global Conservation Decision Makers You've Never Heard Of, Scuba Diving Magazine
- Study suggests MPAs and fisheries closures can benefit highly migratory marine species, Mongabay
Mariana Trench
- Letter from the White House Council on Environmental Quality
- Off the Deep End, Outside Magazine
- Marianas Says U.S. Has Failed to Fulfill Ocean Monument Promises, New York Times
- Sea Change, NBC Nightly News, VIDEO
- Mariana Trench Marine Monument, KSPN
Climate Colonialism
Pollution
- How do plastics get to the bottom of the sea? WHYY, a public radio station
- A Troubling Discovery in the Deepest Ocean Trenches, The Atlantic
Random
Sharks
- Association of Pacific Island Legislatures 2015 resolution
- 'Shark Week' Fuels Shark Meat Feeding Frenzy at Restaurants, NPR
- Seized shark fins dumped in Pacific Ceremony, AFP
- Victory for vulnerable whale sharks at Pacific meeting, AFP
- British Virgin Islands establishing sanctuary for all shark species in its territorial waters, AP
- How We Can Protect Our Wandering Sharks, Forbes
- Obama Accused of undermining shark conservation, The Guardian
Even More Sharks
- Proposed federal shark-finning rule sparks state concerns, E&E News
- Tiny state big on shark protection, New Zealand Herald
- Shark fin demand drops as Chinese government cracks down on spending, Radio Australia
- Shark fin vendors report 82 per cent drop in sales after anti-corruption campaign, South China Morning Post
- Kids Help Save the Oceans With Shark Stanley, Mental Floss
- Go Scuba Diving in a Marine Sanctuary Without Leaving Your Desk, American Scientist
- Shark Fin Controversy, Surfer Magazine
- Shark Fin Soup is Going Extinct, VICE
- China's Anti-Corruption Crackdown is Saving Sharks, International Business Times
- Shark fin soup off the menu: China's crackdown on extravagant banquets gives sharks a second chance, The Independent
- Save the Sharks by Swimming With Them, Smithsonian Magazine
- Shark Week is Making People Go Nuts Eating Threatened Sharks, Jezebel
- Shark Week has jumped the shark, The Daily Dot
- Swimming With Giants, Mission Blue
- Across the world's seas, more refuges for predators, Conservation International
- Shark Summit: Bimini, The Bahamas, Coastal Angler Magazine
- Save the Sharks, Trinidad Express
- Ground Breaking Science Could Help Manage Sharks, The Bahamas Weekly
- Pacific Lawmakers Call For Ocean Wide Shark Protections, OceaniaTV
- International Organization On a Drive to Preserve the Lives of Sharks, CC6 Grenada
- Guam Among First to Protect Sharks, KUAM News
- Sharkwater Saipan, Sharkwater
- Guam Shark Tsunami, The Pew Charitable Trusts
THINGS I WROTE & SAID
Indigenous-led Conservation
- Indigenous-led Marine Conservation Should be the Future of Our Movement
- Social Equity and the Need to Decolonize Marine Conservation in the Pacific Islands
- 5 Ways Scientists, NGOs, and Governments Can Support Indigenous-led Conservation
- U.S. Pacific Territories and the America the Beautiful Initiative Can Deliver Ocean Climate Solutions
- Understanding Indigenous-led Conservation
- Dreaming of a Protected Ocean
30x30
Marine Protected Areas
- Pacific Cultural Exchanges Promote Best Practices for Ocean Protection
- Leading Marine Scientists Call On President Obama to Expand Hawaii Marine Reserve
- Global Body Moves to Help Countries Apply Marine Protection
- Research Key to Boosting Benefits of Large Marine Protected Areas
- Can Spatial Protections in the Ocean Help Large Migratory Species?
- To Achieve 30% Ocean Protection, Governments Can Look Beyond Conventional Tools
- New Framework Helps to Clearly Define Marine Protections and Benefits
- The 'Pluto Moment' for Marine Protected Areas
- More Work Needed on MPAs
Sharks
- Turks and Caicos Islands Approves Shark Export Ban
- Pew Commends Federated States of Micronesia Action to Protect Sharks
- Worldwide Launch for New Shark Stanley Book Kicks Off in Grenada
- Micronesian States Vote to Declare Shark Sanctuaries
- The Return of Shark Stanley
- Enforcing Laws of the World's Shark Sanctuaries
- Pacific Leaders Call for Oceanwide Shark Protections
- U.S. Rule Could Limit Micronesian Efforts to Protect Sharks
- World's Largest Tuna Body Grants Protection for Whale Sharks, But Continues to Endorse Overfishing
- Tracking Shark Fins in the Marketplace
- Song of the Sea
- Protecting Sharks That Protect Islanders
- Disposing of Confiscated Shark Fins
- A Trip to Chuuk's Shark Islands
Advocacy
Reports
- Kerr, J., P. DeSalles, S. Earle, K. Kikiloi, D McCauley, R. Macpherson, S. Maxwell, R. Richmond, C. Roberts, N. Spies, U. R. Somalia, and A. Villagomez. Pu‘uhonua A Place of Sanctuary: The Cultural and Biological Significance of the proposed expansion for the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. (2016)
- Briggs, J., S. K. Baez, T. Dawson, B. Golder, B. C. O'Leary, J. Petit, C. M. Roberts, A. Rogers, and A. Villagomez. Recommendations to IUCN to Improve Protected Area Classification and Reporting. (2018)
- Upadhye, A., Z. Mirza, and A. Villagomez. Proposed National Marine Sanctuaries Provide a Pathway Toward Indigenous-Led Ocean Conservation. (2023)
- Parsons, E. C. M., R. MacPherson, and A. Villagomez. "Marine “Conservation”: You Keep Using That Word but I Don't Think It Means What You Think It Means." Frontiers in Marine Science 4 (2017): 299.
- Bennett, Nathan J., Laure Katz, Whitney Yadao-Evans, Gabby N. Ahmadia, Scott Atkinson, Natalie C. Ban, Neil Dawson et al. "Advancing social equity in and through marine conservation." Frontiers in Marine Science 8 (2021): 994.
- Grorud-Colvert, Kirsten, Jenna Sullivan-Stack, Callum Roberts, Vanessa Constant, Barbara Horta e Costa, Elizabeth P. Pike, Naomi Kingston et al. "The MPA Guide: A framework to achieve global goals for the ocean." Science 373, no. 6560 (2021): eabf0861.
- Ahmadia, Gabby N., Samantha H. Cheng, Dominic A. Andradi-Brown, Stacy K. Baez, Megan D. Barnes, Nathan J. Bennett, Stuart J. Campbell et al. "Limited Progress in Improving Gender and Geographic Representation in Coral Reef Science." Frontiers in Marine Science (2021): 1334.
- Johnson, Steven Mana‘oakamai and Angelo O. Villagomez. "Assessing the Quantity and Quality of Marine Protected Areas in the Mariana Islands." Frontiers in Marine Science (2022): 1986.
- Pike, Elizabeth P., Jessica MC MacCarthy, Sarah O. Hameed, Nikki Harasta, Kirsten Grorud‐Colvert, Jenna Sullivan‐Stack, Joachim Claudet et al. "Ocean protection quality is lagging behind quantity: Applying a scientific framework to assess real marine protected area progress against the 30 by 30 target." Conservation Letters (2024): e13020.
- Villagomez, Angelo, and Steven Mana’oakamai Johnson. "Disavowing the Doctrine of Discovery: Indigenous Healing, Decolonization, and Implications for Environmental Justice in the Pacific Remote Islands Area." Environmental Justice (2024).
- Sullivan-Stack, Jenna, Gabby N. Ahmadia, Dominic A. Andradi-Brown, Alexandra Barron, Cassandra M. Brooks, Joachim Claudet, Barbara Horta e Costa et al. "Assessments of expected MPA outcomes can inform and improve biodiversity conservation: Case studies using The MPA Guide." Marine Policy 170 (2024): 106364.
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