Natural Habitat Adventures will now lead Earthwatch Expeditions, a tour operator that allows travelers to participate in field-based research.
The adventure tour operator has assumed management of Earthwatch Expeditions after a long-term licensing agreement was finalized in February. Natural Habitat Adventures, also known as Nat Hab, will debut 13 itineraries under the revised brand; the trips will launch next year with more under development.
The rebranded Earthwatch will be known as Earthwatch Expeditions by Nat Hab.
"For more than 50 years, Earthwatch has connected people directly with working scientists conducting some of the most important field research on the planet. Long before I founded Nat Hab, Earthwatch showed me that travel could be a genuine force for conservation," said Nat Hab founder and CEO Ben Bressler.
Travelers on Earthwatch Expeditions will participate in hands-on research addressing environmental challenges, such as ecosystem health and threatened wildlife habitats. Immersive nature experiences are central to the itineraries.
Alongside scientists and their research teams, guests will collect data through experiences like monitoring sea turtle nests in Costa Rica and documenting dolphin nurseries in the Amazon. Other examples include banding owls in the American Southwest and deploying GPS tags on penguins along the coast of Patagonia.
Six itineraries are now available for booking, including a trip to Churchill, Canada, to study climate change at the Arctic's edge; tracking the diet and movements of orcas in Iceland; and shark conservation in Belize.
An additional seven programs will be announced this summer, including experiences in Costa Rica, Arizona and Acadia National Park in Maine.