Rocky Coasts Working Group

picture

Cover Photo from the WG publication Rock Coast Geomorphology: A global perspective published by the Geological Society. The shore platforms and cliffs of the Vale of Glamorgan, U.K.. The scene is taken from Witches Point, Dunraven, looking south to Monknash Point and Nash Point in the distance. (Courtesy of Prof Alan Trenhaile)

WG Chairs:

Prof. Stefano Furlani sfurlani@units.it
University of Trieste (Italy)

Dr. Lluis Gomez Pujol lgomez-pujol@uib.es
Universitat de les Illes Balears (Spain)

Dr. Matt Strzelecki mateusz.strzelecki@uwr.edu.pl
University of Wrocław (Poland)

Past Chairs:

Wayne STEPHENSON (Australia)

Larissa NAYLOR (UK)

David Kennedy (Australia)


Introduction to WG activity:

The rocky coast working group of the IAG/AIG was established in 2005 to further geomorphic enquiry into a relatively unstudied landform system, the rocky coast. The working group was extended in 2009 (Melbourne), 2013 (Paris), 2017 (New Delhi) and 2022 (Coimbra). In 2021 it incorporates more than 110 members disseminated among about 20 countries. A new check of new members and those who have ceased research activities is in progress, in particular after the COVID stop and the Coimbra Conference.

Past activities:

During the 2022-2023 the Working Group staff and other members have been working at the conclusion of the Special Issue “Rock Coasts: A mosaic of Dynamic Landscapes and Landforms”. The Special Issue on Rock Coast Geomorphology, in Marine Geology (Elsevier, IF=3.548), has been improved as an integration for the International Rock Coast Conference entitled “International Rock Coast Conference. A “state of the art” that should have been celebrated in Trieste in August 2020, but the Conference was stopped because of COVID19 pandemia. All the Guest editors are part of the WG Rocky Coasts: Stefano Furlani (University of Trieste, Italy), Lluis Gomez-Pujol (University of Balears, Spain), Larissa Naylor (University of Glasgow, UK), Marta Pappalardo (University of Pisa, Italy), Wayne J. Stephenson (University of Otago, NZ), and Matt Strzelecki (University of Wroclaw, Poland). The contributions to the Special issue are part of the abstract presented to the Conference (www.irc2020.it).
The WG has also been involved at the Coimbra Conference where some members of the Group starting to discuss the re-starting of the Conference in Trieste, possibly in 2024 or 2025. The site of the Conference is re-starting (www.irc2020.it).

Forthcoming activities:

We are planning to re-organize the Conference of the Working Group about Rocky coasts in Trieste in 2024/2025. It will last two days with sessions on all topics of rocky coastal geomorphology and an excursion will be organised along the coast of the Gulf of Trieste and in Istria.
Moreover, the staff of the WG is now planning a scientific/popular book regarding the Rocky coast landforms of the World.


Annual report 2023

Forthcoming…

The International Rock Coast Conference will be held in Trieste (Italy) in June 2025, following postponement due to Covid in 2020. See the associated website here.

Key Achievements

The working group has successfully produced special issues of Marine Geology and Geomorphology and has sponsored many special sessions at international conferences from the European Geophysical Union to the IAG/AIG regional and general congresses. A special issue entitled ‘Rock Coast Geomorphology: A global perspective’ was published by the Geological Society in 2014. This volume provides a regionally-based analysis of the world’s rock coast landforms. The International Coastal Symposium was held in Sydney in early 2016 http://ics2016.org/index.html.