Geopark regional conference: New management and recertification presented
Anyone who has always wanted to know what the Korbach dachshund is doing in the Persian Gulf was in just the right place at the regional conference of the GrenzWelten National Geopark. Prof. Dr Oliver Weidlich from the Department of Engineering Geology at the Technical University of Berlin focused on this question in his presentation on the topic of "Rocks and outcrops explain climate change from a geological perspective". Representatives of the Geopark municipalities and Geopark partners (museums, nature parks, tourism regions...) listened to him with just as much interest as the Geopark guides who had gathered in large numbers for the conference in the Korbach district hall. Beforehand, they had had the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the Georg Viktor Tower PANORAMA on the Korbach Eisenberg during an excursion.
The regional conference also focussed on two important items on the agenda. Firstly, District Administrator Jürgen van der Horst welcomed the new head of the Geopark project office to the Environment and Climate Protection team. Dr Georg Bresser succeeds Kim Peis, who has changed careers and now works as climate manager for the towns of Medebach, Hallenberg and Winterberg. The new head of the project office is a geologist who switched to the oil and gas industry after working as a research assistant at the Geological Institute of RWTH Aachen University. He worked for various international companies for 25 years, most recently in charge of Global Exploration at Wintershall Dea in Kassel.
The District Administrator emphasised the importance of the Geopark as an extracurricular place of learning and stressed how important the Geopark's "field team" is in presenting the cool projects of GrenzWelten and getting the public excited about them. "I received a very warm welcome from this great team," said Dr Bresser. It is great fun to work for such an excellently organised geopark and to develop it further.
The new head of the project office will now have the opportunity to do this for a further five years in a certified National Geopark. Dr Ulrike Mattig from the GeoUnion Alfred Wegener Foundation as the certification commission confirmed the recertification in the second important item on the agenda. She congratulated GrenzWelten on the "great and steep development" that the geopark has undergone, especially in the last five years. "The National Geopark is a seal of quality that only truly rock-rich regions receive according to very clear guidelines," said Dr Mattig. These include the fact that the region not only acts as an ambassador for geology, but also fulfils an educational mission and promotes the development of tourism in a region of geological interest.
Around the two highlights "Korbacher Spalte fossil deposit" and "Eisenberg, Germany's largest gold deposit", GrenzWelten has everything it needs to fulfil the strict certification requirements. GrenzWelten is a leader among geoparks in the use of augmented reality and digitalisation. The certification committee was also particularly pleased with the new website and the combination of digital with appealing print products such as the explorer booklet for schools. "We would like to thank GrenzWelten for its valuable contribution to the overall idea of geoparks in Germany," concluded Dr Mattig in her congratulations on the successful recertification.
Keywords:
Geopark GrenzWelten Environmental and Climate Protection Service