International Geodiversity Day: Sustaining Life on Earth
Non-living nature, or geodiversity, is what sustains all ecosystems and life on Earth. This part of nature is generally ignored, as global, regional, and local efforts focus on biodiversity. At the same time, minerals, rocks, fossils, lakes, rivers, soil or relief, and even the events that transform these elements such as earthquakes or floods that provide habitat for all forms of life, do not garner similar attention. This is why it is essential to make society aware of the importance and care of geodiversity.
Thanks to the work of the geological scientific community, geodiversity has gained interest in recent years, and Latin America is no stranger to the need to conserve the geoheritage. To protect, conserve, and raise awareness about the care of natural resources, UNESCO, together with different organizations created in 2017 the UNESCO Global Geoparks Network for Latin America and the Caribbean. Today, there are 7 geoparks in the region: Araipe in Brazil, Grutas del Palacio in Uruguay, Comarca Minera in Mexico, Mixteca Alta in Mexico, Imbabura in Ecuador, Colca and Andagua Volcanoes in Peru and Kütralkura in Chile. These geoparks also bring civil society closer to key areas of geological interest through geotourism.
The Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) recently held a session at SSUNGA78 (Scientific Summit of the UN General Assembly) on geodiversity and its importance in the Risaralda River (Colombia).
At the 41st UNESCO General Conference in 2021, October 6 was established as the International Geodiversity Day. This year, UNESCO's will celebrate the day with the motto "Geodiversity is for Everyone" and the organization of more than 250 events worldwide. Among the events organized to mark this date in the Americas region this year are:
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Name of Event
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Organiser
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Event Description
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Date and Time of the event
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Format of the event
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Country and City
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Name of the place of the event
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Second Geodiversity fair
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Sernageomin and MIM
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There will be various stands where people can learn more about earth sciences. We will have hydrogeological, geothermal, and geological hazard models, rock and mineral samples, activities about volcanoes, infographics, storytelling, and much more.
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6 October 2023
09:30 (GMT-3)
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In Person
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Chile, Santiago
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Museo Interactivo Mirador
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Tumbler Ridge Geodiversity Pop-up
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Tumbler Ridge UNESCO Global Geopark
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A small poster exhibition, in association with the Tumbler Ridge Museum, showing how geological history links the Tumbler Ridge Global Geopark with other sites and Geoparks around the world.
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6 October 2023
10:00 (GMT-8)
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In Person
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Canada, Tumbler Ridge
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Tumbler Ridge Visitor Center - Conference Room
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Que rocha é essa? (What rock is that?)
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Yasmim Pussente Pimentel Lima
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There will be five rocks (marble, granite, slate, basalt, pumice, and limestone) on separate tables in the classroom. Students will be invited into the room with pencils and notebooks to draw each of the rocks and name them. At the end of the activity, they will be told the names of each rock. Those who get the names of the rocks right and those who draw the most realistic drawings will earn points toward their grades.
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4 October 2023
15:00
(GMT-3)
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In Person
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Brazil, Nova Iguaçu, Rio de Janeiro
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Colégio Estadual Marechal Juarez Távora
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GeoCine (GeoCinema)
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Seridó World Geopark of UNESCO
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Cinema session organized at the cultural center, open to the public, to watch the documentary about the Seridó UNESCO Global Geopark
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12 October 2023
19:30 (GMT-3)
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In Person
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Brazil, Currais Novos
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Casa da Cultura
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Geodiversity in Colombia: Heritage Values of Underground Environments
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Libraries Division Universidad del Valle
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The Mario Carvajal Library of the Universidad del Valle is a depository of Documents of International Organizations, disseminating printed or digital material of documents with editorial letterhead of the UN and of organizations linked to it. Hence the commemoration of the International Geodiversity Day for the knowledge of the academic community.
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9 October 2023
14:30 (GMT-5)
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In Person
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Colombia, Cali
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Angel Zapata Auditorium, Campus Meléndez, Universidad del Valle
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