Geology for Global Development

The importance of wetlands

Bárbara Zambelli February 7, 2019

Rice paddies in Phong Nha region, Vietnam (Nov 2018) - Photo: Bárbara Zambelli

World Wetlands day is celebrated on 2nd February, marking the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands, also known as Ramsar Convention, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on 2nd February 1971. It “provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.” Today 170 countries have adopted it and 2,341 Ramsar sites covering ...[Read More]

What is happening after the Fuego eruption in Guatemala? Is climate migration a bad thing? This and more in Jesse Zondervan’s June 2018 #GfGDpicks #SciComm

Jesse Zondervan July 4, 2018

St. Martin's Island. . Credit: Saiful Islam, - CC BY-SA 4.0. .

Each month, Jesse Zondervan picks his favourite posts from geoscience and development blogs/news which cover the geology for global development interest. Here’s a round-up of Jesse’s selections for the last month: Everything about the Fuego eruption At the start of this month, Guatemala’s Fuego volcano erupted explosively, costing many lives and destroying properties and infrastructure. Professor ...[Read More]

New mining frontiers: Digging into the unknown

Robert Emberson June 5, 2018

The gorgonian sea fan Callogorgia americana and symbiotic brittle stars from a site at approximately 350 meters depth in the Green Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico. In the bottom left of the image are some small, brown anemones that have colonized a portion of the skeleton of the sea fan. . Credit: Lophelia II 2010 Expedition, NOAA-OER/BOEMRE. .

While climate change occupies the headlines as our biggest long-term concern for sustainability, there may well be further anthropogenic challenges that arise in the next century as we disrupt the delicate interplay of natural ecological and geological cycles to satisfy the need for resources of our ever-growing population. The mining industry makes for a pertinent example: it sits on the verge o ...[Read More]

Circular economy of metals and responsible mining

Bárbara Zambelli April 24, 2018

Open pit iron mine, Itabira - Brazil (Credit: Bárbara Zambelli)

In today’s post, Bárbara Zambelli, considers how we can transition business models towards a more sustainable way of living, manufacturing and consuming. As I mentioned before in my post about Urban Geology and Underground Urbanisation, according to the UN report, the current world population of 7.6 billion is expected to reach 8.6 billion in 2030 and 9.8 billion in 2050. In addition, the pe ...[Read More]