Scholarly record

GEOPARK COMPARISONS AND FUNCTIONAL MODELING

Lennart Bornmalm, Rodney Stevens, Alexander Ivanov, Ekaterina A. Mitina, Denis Vasiliev

Abstract

UNESCO’s Global Geopark Network reflects the importance of geo-heritage for society. The wide range of characteristics and the varied connections to the local ecology and culture are significant for their individual management. The aim of this article is to use comparisons between Geoparks as a step toward a generic, conceptual model that can be adapted and used to understand the crucial, functional relationships between system variables and how these variables can be optimized for stainable management. A general comparison of European Geoparks is combined with specific examples from England, Russia and Sweden. Geoparks combine geological, cultural and ecological heritage goals in varying degrees, but usually most balanced in the larger Geoparks with a pronounced landscape perspective, where the physical and biological resources have impacted cultural and ecological developments most clearly. “Functional Facies” are defined here by the functional associations between system components in the landscape. Modeling with different levels of detail can help deal with the relationship complexities, both for understanding the system and for predictive modeling for management decision support. System modeling of “Landscape Geoparks” can offer management support beyond preservation and educational measures that are most commonly in focus. Regional and global issues also need the holistic approach based on the physical and biological resources in the landscape that Geoparks can help provide.

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