Se ha celebrado entre el 25 y 31 de agosto de 2024, en Busán (República de Corea del Sur), el 37º Congreso Internacional de Geología (37th International Geological Congress), que tiene lugar cada cuatro años desde hace siglo y medio, organizado por la Unión Internacional de Ciencias Geológicas (IUGS).
Casualmente hace casi un siglo, en el año 1926, el congreso geológico internacional se celebró en Madrid, teniendo como sede el Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, y realizando una excursión a la Sierra de Guadarrama.
Entre las miles de comunicaciones, conferencias, ponencias, excursiones, etc. que han tenido lugar estos días en Corea, cómo no, ha estado presente la geología de Segovia a través de una comunicación sobre los ELIGES (Entornos con Lugares de Interés Geológico para Educación ambiental en Segovia).
Efectivamente, en la T30 (Urban Geology) Session 2 (General topics), se presentó oralmente la comunicación titulada «Mainstreaming urban geoheritage as a tool for environmental education and geotourism in local administrations«, de la que son autores Juana Vegas y Andrés Díez-Herrero (IGME, CSIC). El resumen de la comunicación aparece publicado entre los abstracts del Congreso en su página web en Internet.
Abstract
(descargar abstract en PDF de las actas del Congreso desde ResearchGate)
In 2022 there will be more than 8 billion people on our planet and currently around 56% of the world’s population lives in cities. For millions of people the little ‘nature’ in urban environments, together with gardens, zoos and parks are the only option for real contact with biodiversity and geodiversity. Geoheritage and geodiversity are also present in many cities and form part of their skyline, with rock outcrops in streets and squares, which may contain fossils in the case of sedimentary rocks. The wide variety of ornamental rocks on building walls and interiors are also a resource at our disposal. The movable geological heritage in collections and museums allows us to enjoy elements that are accessible to all audiences (including people with disabilities). Not forgetting the rock gardens in some cities. The relationship between the geology and the historical-artistic buildings is highly remarkable, through the location of the quarries from which the raw materials were extracted, the traditional trades, the foundations of monumental buildings, and even legends, children’s stories and miraculous with a geological background. This social reality shows the great potential of urban geoheritage as an asset for the promotion of environmental education, geotourism and the health of people living in or visiting cities.
A paradigmatic case in the integration of geoheritage in land-use planning, environmental education programmes and urban geotourism is the city of Segovia (Spain). Due to its position on the Iberian Peninsula (SW Europe), Segovia’s geological record covers the last 600 Ma of Earth’s history. A detailed inventory of the municipal district was compiled that containing 94 geosites, where four of them are collections of minerals, rocks and fossils (movable geoheritage). An assessment method of the geoheritage for environmental education and geotourism in the urban areas was designed, including six main criteria that specifically assess aspects of environmental education, geohazards, global change and geotourism. The potential users of environmental education in the city have also been considered: students of primary, secondary and university education, families in their leisure time, visitors and people with disabilities. This assessment of the geoheritage is a novel design worldwide, and this is the first time that it has been implemented and applied to a city. This model can be replicated in any other urban area. Understanding Segovia’s geological past and present through environmental education and geotourism generates more resilience among people when tackling important issues in our society such as climate change and its effects on the urban ecosystem and people.
Pero esta no ha sido la única presencia de Segovia en el Congreso Geológico Internacional de Busan (Corea del Norte):
- Otro geólogo segoviano, el Dr. Javier González (segundo por la derecha en la foto inferior), también participó activamente en el Congreso, presentando sus investigaciones en geología marina y exploración de recursos minerales submarinos.
- La geóloga hindú Gurmeet Kaur, chair de la subcomisión de Heritage Stones de la IUGS, comenzó su ponencia invitada de su sesión (Stones in monuments / Monuments in stones: relevance and significance) hablando de las rocas en los monumentos de Segovia, gracias a dos preciosas láminas que Juana Vegas le regaló del patrimonio monumental en roca de nuestra ciudad. Ella regaló a Juana una preciosa pieza del mineral prehnita de India, que ésta ha donado al GeoMuseo de Valseca, para que pueda ser admirada por todo el público segoviano.
En definitiva, un extraordinario congreso geológico internacional en el que, una vez más, la presencia de la geología segoviana se ha dejado sentir. Nos vemos en Calgary (Canadá) en 2028.
Gracias a Juani, Gurmeet, Javier y a Nieves (por las fotos de la intervención de Juani).