On 10th June, EuroGeoSurveys participated in an online event entitled “The Future of Geoscience” – a virtual summit, arranged by the Geological Society of London. The summit was organized in three different sessions with keynote speakers representing the geological field as well as industry sector and school system. During each of the sessions, the panelists highlighted the current risks and challenges the geo-scientific community is facing concerning especially the public “perception” of geology and the issues connected with education, industry and politics. Among the highlights of the summit, the panelists argued how proper science communication could help in delivering the added value of geoscience in the green and digital transformation. Read the insights of the event...

PDAC, the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada’s annual convention returned to Toronto on 1-4 March 2020. EGS was present at the EU booth, which hosted several actors from the H2020 project framework, EU member states, SMEs and EU Geological Surveys. At the EU networking breakfast, the EGS Secretary General Dr. Slavko Solar presented “EuroGeoSurveys and Minerals”. Moreover, the 2020 International Meeting of Geological Surveys Organizations was held for discussing the future of the International Consortium of Geological Surveys. During the convention, EGS had the chance to discuss about a potential future collaboration with the State Service for Geology and Subsoil of Ukraine (SGSSU). The PDAC convention was a fruitful occasion for having a glimpse of the future steps in the global mining sector while raising attention on sustainable and responsible sourcing of raw materials. Click here to view and download the full...

To all our members: Between 2nd and 9th August 2020, the Joint Conference of ISEH 2020 (The 5th International Symposium on Environment and Health), ICEPH 2020 (The 6th International Conference on Environmental Pollution and Health) & G16 2020 (The 7th International Conference on Research Frontiers on Chalcogen Cycle Science and Technology)  will be held in Galway, the 2020 Capital of Culture. The main themes of the conference will concern health, environment and GIS and Agriculture in the Big Data Era. In this context, the IUGS Commission on Global Geochemical Baselines and the EuroGeoSurveys Geochemistry Expert Group are organizing a session called: “Geochemical mapping at all scales: evidence from the soil, sediment, water and plants”. Session conveners: Philippe Négrel and Alecos Demetriades The deadline for the abstract submission is on March 1, 2020. Potential attendees are invited to submit their abstracts on time using the Abstract Template from the conference website. You can submit your abstract via the following online system (www.nuigalway.ie/iseh2020/abstractsubmission), and follow the instructions:  “For invited delegates for an organised session, you are required to choose “ORGANIZED SESSIONS” on the system and choose the corresponding session topic provided by your session convenor. Organised sessions are listed based on the alphabetic order of the surnames of the 1st session convenors.  Invited delegates are those who have been invited by a session convenor and their abstracts have been approved by the session convenor for an oral presentation (15 minutes, 12 min talk + 3 min Q&A) or a poster presentation in the organised session.  Full list of organised sessions are available on the Conference website “Sessions” page”. For more information, please visit the conference website: http://www.nuigalway.ie/iseh2020/. View or download the information package...

On 24 and 25 October 2019, about 70 PanAfGeo partners from around 50 European and African countries gathered in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, for the Phase 1 closing meeting. The Ministers responsible for minerals in Tanzania and Kenya were the guests of honour. Attendees included some of the project’s main contributors: OAGS Executive Committee members, stakeholders and representatives of Geological Surveys in Africa and Europe and the European Commission. An overview of all the PanAfGeo Project activities performed under each work package was presented and was followed by a feedback session. A complete review of the three years of training was presented by each WP leader. The complete list of the PanAfGeo work packages are available here: www.panafgeo.eurogeosurveys.org/about The PanAfGeo Project: an overview (2016-2019) Results and impacts: PanAfGeo increased the technical competence of 1,074 trainees from 49 African countries (all except Burundi, Libya, Mauritius, Seychelles and Somalia). No other EU programme so far has ever had such a cross-continental geographical coverage, overcoming language (trainings in three languages: English, French, Portuguese), cultural and political barriers. The European Commission’s intention of increasing attention for more effective cooperation with Africa has therefore been fully met by PanAfGeo Phase 1, through its geoscience training programmes for officers of African Geological Surveys. The programme has clearly strengthened the partnership between EU and African countries in several areas, bringing substantial benefits to the societies in Africa and, indirectly, in Europe, through the establishment of stable institutional relations based on mutual trust and respect. The consideration of many African Ministers being present at various PanAfGeo events proves the impact generated at the highest decision making and political levels. The future – PanAfGeo Phase 2: Nevertheless, there is always room for improvement and the framework of possible work packages for PanAfGeo-2 were...

The Organising Committee and the European Association for the Conservation of the Geological Heritage (ProGEO) is pleased to invite you to take part in the Xth International ProGEO Symposium. The meeting is organised by the Instituto Geológico y Minero de España (IGME, the Geological Survey of Spain) and will take place in Segovia (Spain) from 8th to 11th of June 2020. This symposium is an international event open to scientists, students, educators, professionals, decision-makers and anyone involved in geoconservation. The symposium is organized in conjunction with several geoconservation organizations also hosting their meetings in Segovia during the same dates. These include: A Workshop of the IUCN WCPA Geoheritage Specialist Group (GSG),The 1st Workshop on Geoheritage of Volcanic Islands,The 4th Meeting of ProGEO’s Southwest Europe Regional Working Group,A meeting of the African Geoconservation Group of the EU-funded PanAfGeo project, andA meeting of the Geoherithage Commission of the Association of Iberoamerican Geological and Mining Surveys (ASGMI). The Symposium will provide the opportunity to discuss the new challenges and threats in global geoconservation. The knowledge and experience acquired within ProGEO during the last decades at national, European and global levels projects this scientific organization as the international leader in geoconservation. Recent developments include issues such as methodologies for the inventory of Geological Sites of Interest, geoconservation in natural protected areas, benefits and impact of rural development and geotourism in geoparks, legislation and management in a global conservation framework. The Symposium will promote communication and collaboration amongst the different stakeholders and actors in modern geoheritage conservation from all over the world present at the various joint meetings taking place at Segovia. Download the brochure of the congress for visualizing the important dates, the scientific programme and the necessary information about travel and accommodation in Segovia. For further information...

On February 20-21, 2020 the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) is hosting the inaugural international conference Big data and machine learning in geosciences in Berlin, with kind support of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi). The conference will highlight these issues by giving a platform for outstanding experts in the field of big data and machine learning. Contributions from academia, governmental organizations and industry are highly appreciated. February 20will address big data and AI applications in a global perspective with keynotes from selected issues. Invited talks introduce the current state and describe future tracks of machine learning (ML) technologies for geospatial applications. The experts join for a moderated plenary discussion on “How AI is changing the game”. February 21will focus on specific applications of ML in geosciences with invited talks on mineral and petroleum exploration, groundwater and soil science, Earth data mining and geohazard assessment. The experts join for a moderated plenary discussion on “Challenges and opportunities in geosciences”. The main aim of the conference is to discuss challenges and opportunities in managing big data and natural resources in the light of global climate change and energy transition with experts, scientists, governmental organizations and industry. Detailed information is provided by the attached circular as well as by BGR´s website. Please click the link for more details about the conference and the online registration: https://www.bgr.bund.de/big_data&ML. The participation to the conference is free of charge. Download the leaflet with the full description of the conference...

The European Shallow Geothermal Days was arranged between 24 & 25 September 2019 by the European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC), the Renewable Heating and Cooling Platform (RHC-ETIP) and the Interreg Central Europe project GeoPLASMA-CE in association with EuroGeoSurveys. Shallow geothermal energy represents a well-developed, non-volatile and clean technology for providing efficient heating and cooling across Europe. It is often associated with the use of ground source heat pumps but offers a wide range of applications such as geo-cooling or seasonal heat storage. Still, it is widely considered as a niche technology only covering around 2% of the renewable heating. From September 24 to 25, more than 60 experts from over 18 European countries met in Brussels to join the first “European Shallow Geothermal Energy Days” to discuss ways to support a better integration of this technology in the European heating and cooling market. The European Shallow Geothermal Energy Days aimed at connecting policy makers to scientists and professionals, to promote and discuss opportunities for boosting this technology in the upcoming decade. This event represents a new format introduced by the European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC), the Renewable Heating and Cooling Platform (RHC-ETIP) and the Interreg Central Europe project GeoPLASMA-CE. For more information about the event and its sessions, read and download the press...

The French Geological Survey (BRGM), the ANR FLUIDSTORY project, the European Network for Research in Geo-Energy (ENeRG) in association with EuroGeoSurveys are organizing a workshop in Paris on the 7 & 8 October 2019. The workshop will focus on the critical role of energy storage in the future of energy systems and its compatibility with an environmentally friendly environment. Subsurface energy storage represents a complex and broadly evolving field of research, as it covers multiple scales of application, a variety of end-user profiles, and different types of energy carriers. Subsurface storage capacities are present in many types of geological formations, each of which has its own criteria for identifying techno-economic viability. The key to unveiling the full potential and effective implementation of large- scale subsurface energy storage lies in the integration of geological knowledge, engineering solutions, market economy information and a comprehensive analysis of the entire energy system. Close cooperation between all actors from science, industry and policy areas is therefore essential to a successful development. The objectives of the workshop are to discuss current technological status and research needs for the development of the subsurface energy storage technologies, and exchange with energy producers and consumers who need energy storage solutions. For more information on the workshop, registration and call for posters, read carefully the draft of the 2nd announcement of the...

On 7-8 November, EuroGeoSurveys will take part in the “GEO-XVI Plenary and Ministerial Summit 2019”. In the summit, the focus will be an integration of Earth observation data into the growing digital economy field as a critical action for achieving a sustained and inclusive economic growth. To prove the added value of the investments on Earth Observation, several business cases will be showcased for explaining the benefits of these investments in terms of return on investments to governments, businesses and communities. The debate will mainly focus on the following strategic topics: •    Future of Work; •    Trade-in Digital Services; •    Privacy in a Big Data World; •    Sharing Economy. Moreover, the summit foresees a deep discussion about the integration of the GEO and its Strategic Plan into the multilateral economic cooperation framework. The key items of GEO’s agenda support three areas of global importance and commitment: •    The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development •    The Paris Climate Accord •    The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction To know more about the summit, visit the GEO Group on Earth Observations...

EuroGeoSurveys (EGS) – Stephanie Bricker (BGS – Chair) welcomed everyone to the first UGEG meeting at the EGS Secretariat in Brussels, Belgium. Wider interests and experience of the UGEG are also presented in the biographies that had been prepared by the participants. The meeting had around 24 members representing approximately 16 European Surveys. Click here to...