Busan City Hosts 'International Geology Forum' ... Participation of Domestic and Foreign Experts

For Successful UNESCO Global Geopark Certification and IGC 2024 Hosting

International Geological Forum Poster.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] Busan City, together with the Geological Society of Korea and the Organizing Committee of the International Geological Congress 2024, will hold the ‘International Geology Forum’ over two days on July 28 and 29 at BEXCO and the Busan Geopark area.

This forum is organized to celebrate Busan’s UNESCO Global Geopark certification and the successful hosting of the 37th International Geological Congress. The city will conduct the forum and field inspections over the two days.

The forum will include domestic and international experts on global geoparks. These scholars, who have experience as verification committee members directly involved in certification, are expected to serve as advisors for Busan’s UNESCO Global Geopark certification.

At 11 a.m. on the 28th, the ▲opening ceremony and ▲International Geological Congress (IGC) trophy handover ceremony will take place. During the trophy handover, the Indian Organizing Committee, which led the 36th Congress, will pass the trophy to the Korean Organizing Committee, the next host country, officially marking the start of the 37th International Geological Congress (IGC 2024).

Following this, ▲Lee Su-jae, Honorary Research Fellow at the Korea Environment Institute and a domestic expert in the geopark field, will deliver a keynote speech titled ‘A Wonderful Life in the Geopark.’ ▲Session 1 will review the validity of Busan’s UNESCO Global Geopark certification and examine domestic certification cases such as Mudeungsan and Jeju Island.

▲Session 2 will feature international experts including Guy Martini, Chair of UNESCO Global Geoparks; Patrick Mckeever, Special Advisor to UNESCO Global Geoparks; and Young Ng, a UNESCO Geopark official from Danhasan, who will continue lectures on ‘Geoparks and Geotourism.’

Special Advisor Patrick Mckeever will visit Busan in person to present on the topic and participate in the field inspection on the 29th, providing detailed advice in preparation for UNESCO’s on-site inspection scheduled for the end of September.

The field inspection will be conducted at ▲Songdo Peninsula geological site, where the Cretaceous strata called the ‘Dadaepo Formation’ create an overwhelming landscape, and at ▲Sinpyeongso Park, a preliminary geological site where dinosaur footprints were recently discovered and related research is underway.

With expectations for UNESCO certification early next year following a successful on-site evaluation in September, the city regards this year as the golden time for UNESCO Global Geopark certification and is putting forth full efforts.

The city plans to build a geopark visitor center and information boards, train geological interpreters to enhance convenience for tourists visiting geological sites, and promote the value of Busan’s geological sites through website renewal and academic research projects. Additionally, programs targeting local residents and collaborations with schools will be operated to build public consensus, and various policies such as developing a geo-brand will be pursued to highlight Busan’s natural attractions.

Through these efforts, the city aims to complete certification before the 37th International Geological Congress (IGC 2024), which will be attended by over 6,000 participants from more than 100 countries, to globally promote Busan’s geological sites and maximize synergy effects with the congress.

Lee Geun-hee, Director of the Green Environment Policy Office of Busan City, stated, “Busan’s outstanding natural scenery and metropolitan infrastructure supporting 3.4 million residents will serve as a successful model for marine city global geoparks,” and added, “We ask for citizens’ interest in the UNESCO Global Geopark certification so that Busan’s geological sites, where nature, history, and culture harmonize, can be reborn as new regional tourist attractions.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.