Landform Assessment for Geodiversity Working Group

 

 

WG Chairs:

Prof. Zbigniew Zwolinski
Poznań (Poland)
e-mail

Prof. Marco Giardino
Torino (Italy)
e-mail

 

Secretary:

M.Sc. Alicja Najwer
Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań (Poland)
e-mail

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Introduction to WG activity

 

Increasing interest on geodiversity motivated to establishing a new IAG/AIG Working Group, i.e., on Landform Evaluation for Geodiversity. Last years, especially 2012-2013 indicated many opportunities to develop greater interest on geodiversity in Earth System Science. Development of geodiversity concept over the last 20 years is a good forecast for further developments that research approach within geomorphology.
It is important that science of geomorphology may participate in such innovative concept and approach it in modern science on Earth System. We as geomorphologists cannot avoid this chance to participate in establishing landform dimensions for geodiversity. Main goals of the group for quadrenium 2013-2017 are:

1. developing concept of the role of landform in geodiversity and its methodology,

2. establishing standards and rules for assessing landform from the geodiversity point of view in different spatial and temporal scales,

3. organizing international symposia, training courses and/or field conferences on landform evaluation for geodiversity, at minimum one per year,

4. editing a remarkable set of special issues in international journals,

5. editing book/manual on landform evaluation of geodiversity, and finally,

6. collecting bibliography for geodiversity.

The overall scope of the Working Group is to provide new insights on geodiversity of landform and to develop an integrated assessment of landform for geodiversity by means of geoinformation (GIS) methodologies and tools: these will lead to the identification, quantification and modeling of landform for geodiversity purposes in different spatial scales and during the past and present times. The potential impacts of glocal (i.e., global and local) present-day changes on landforms from the geodiversity point of view and of their socio-economic implications will be also analyzed. By means of analyses of a world-wide data set of case-studies we also aim to investigate relationships between landform geodiversity and local cultures, as a means for understanding peculiar attitudes towards natural phenomena, useful for improving nature conservation and resilience of our society. The working group will also analyse the role of anthropogenic activity and landforms in the enrichment or impoverishment of geodiversity. Since our approach will consider the geodiversity as a “dynamic entity”; particular attention will be devoted to the influences of global changes on geodiversity at different dimensions. Short- and long-term variability will be coupled with spatial differentiation of geodiversity in morphoclimatic zones.

 

Steering Committee:

Prof. John Clague (Burnaby, Canada)
Prof. Marco Giardino (Torino, Italy)
Prof. Murray Gray (London, United Kingdom)
Prof. Mario Panizza (Modena, Italy)
Prof. Zbigniew Zwoliński (Poznań, Poland)

Forthcomings   Activities 2015   Activities 2014 IAG/AIG Working Group on Landform Assessment for Geodiversity meeting, 15-19 September 2014, Torino, Italy IAG/AIG Intensive Course on Geodiversity and geoheritage: evaluation and interpretation, 09-13 September 2014, Bard, Italian Western Alps Participation of WG members to the University of Minho Summer international workshop on Geodiversity and Geoheritage, 26-28 June 2014 – Terras de Cavaleiros Geopark – Portugal Contribution of the WG LAG to the Eight national Assembly of the ILTER network of global International Long Term Ecological Research site, 14-15 May 2014, Torino, Italy Session GM1.9 Landforms and Geodiversity during European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2014 , 27 April – 02 May 2014, Vienna, Austria   Activities 2013 Establishing of the IAG/AIG Working Group on Landform Assessment for Geodiversity, 30 August 2013, Paris, France

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