From 27th to 30th of September, the 7th UNESCO Global Geopark International Conference was held in the English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark of UK.More than 700 government leaders, experts, scholars and geopark managers from 63 countries and regions attended the meeting, including more than 150 representatives from China. Chinese representatives actively participated in this conference and obtained many honors, which attracted universal attention and recognition of foreign counterparts and is the highlight of this conference. Six representatives from Zhangjiajie UNESCO Global Geopark and the Joint Research Center for Zhangjiajie Geomorphology attended this conference and had a wide-ranging publicity and promotions for Zhangjiajie Global UNESCO Geopark¡¯s tourism resources. Geomorphological expert and the director of the Joint Research Center for Zhangjiajie Geomorphology, Prof. HUANG Heqing of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, also gave a special presentation during the conference. These activities impressed considerably the knowledge of international community on the scientific values of Zhangjiajie UNESCO Global Geopark and its tourism resources and facilities and obtained broad attention and high evaluations from foreign representatives.
During the conference, the representatives from Zhangjiajie Geopark made a friendly communication activity with the English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark of UK and signed a cooperation agreement. To promote healthy and sustainable development, the two geoparks agreed to develop a multi-level and all-round cooperation and to communicate frequently on each geopark¡¯s construction, management, tourism and culture development, and so on.
English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark of UK, with very strong city characteristics, has 62 km2 land area, 42 km2 sea area and a population of 134,000. In the geopark, rich geological relics from Devonian reefs to Pleistocene bone holes are well distributed. The geology of the geopark not only has the initial characteristics of the Devonian Period, but also is closely related with the regional science and culture development history. The first-class geological resources, complete and mature tourism infrastructure and the good-reputation innovation protection trust have made the English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark one of the most active members of the UNESCO Global Geopark Network. More information about English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark can be found from the website: http://www.englishrivierageopark.org.uk
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