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2008 Call for IGCP Project Proposals
The International Geoscience Programme (IGCP) launches its 2008 call for project proposals. New IGCP projects shall reach out beyond the earth science community to decision-makers, government planners and policy-makers and shall be interdisciplinary in nature. Particular attention shall be given to Geoscience of the Water Cycle, Geohazards, Earth Resources, Global Change and Life Evolution, Other relevant topics in basic/applied geoscience. The primary aims of IGCP are to facilitate international collaboration amongst scientists from around the world in research on geological problems, particularly between those individuals from more industrialized and those from developing countries. Guidelines and application forms are available here.

New Japanese Geopark Committee established in the framework of the International Year of Planet Earth. The Global Geoparks Community is steadily growing and new national initiatives see the light each day, like the recently established Japanese Geopark Committee. We invite interested people to visit the extremely instructive and well designed website which is showing examples of places in Japan which are significant for geological heritage and geo-tourism. More

Two UNESCO Global Geopark Network members win Skål International Ecotourism Award 13 October 2008. In the category of general countryside: Lesvos Petrified Forest Geopark, Greece and in the category of educational programmes: Geopark Naturtejo Meseta Meridional, Portugal.

Skål International, founded as an international association in 1934 is the largest organization of travel and tourism professionals in the world, embracing all sectors of the travel and tourism industry in 90 countries and at over 500 locations, with 20,000 members from hoteliers to travel agents, airlines, tourism media and tourism academies, etc. Skål is aiming at quality in tourism and values sustainable development in tourism as the key to the industry’s future success and considers ecotourism but one area of the various components of sustainable development and responsible tourism. To encourage the conservation of the environment and help to promote the development of responsible and sustainable tourism, Skål International initiated an awards programme in 2002, during the UN declared “Year of Ecotourism and the Mountains”. While the purpose of these awards was to highlight best practices in ecotourism around the world, they were also created with the aim of acquainting the world with this new concept that puts emphasis on the importance of the interaction of the physical, cultural and social environment, the traveler’s responsibility and the need for active community participation for ecotourism. More