The Republic of Ecuador, commonly known as Ecuador is a democratic republic country located in the northwestern region of South America. Ecuador is bordered by Colombia to the north, bordered by Peru to the south and west and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of two countries in South America that shares no border with Brazil, with the other being Chile. Galapagos Island, the popular island in which Charles Darwin started formulating his theory of evolution by natural selection is one of Ecuador's territories located 620 miles west of the mainland in the pacific ocean.
The most common language spoken in Ecuador is Spanish due to the colonialism of Spain a few centuries ago. Ecuador eventually gained its independence after separating from Gran Colombia in 1830. Ecuador recently enacted a new constitution in 2008. Ecuador's new constitution is the first one in the world to recognize legally enforceable rights of nature. Ecuador is governed by a democratically elected president that serves a four year term. However, the justices of Ecuador's national court serve a nine year term and they are selected by the council of social participation. Ecuador is a medium-income country and 35.1% of its population lives below the poverty line.