Resilience Live Episode 10: Macolod to Masungi: Conversations on the Conservation of Geoheritage in the Philippines
Date: June 27, 2024
Speaker: Ms. Naomi Irapta
Bionote: She works at the interface between natural and social sciences to explore landscape and its associated risk, abiotic nature conservation, and public geoeducation. She’s currently a PhD student of Physical Geography at Eötvös Loránd University, working on volcanic geoheritage. Her professional work experience span a wide range of fields from local volcanic DRR consultations to reviewing scientific significance of geoheritage sites for the IUGS Geoheritage Commission, as well as university-level teaching in (UPD CS and CSSP). She’s also part of the UNESCO IGCP 692 “Geoheritage for Resilience” Project. On the side, she works in collaboration with community art initiatives to make geoeducation accessible, focusing on the interconnection of abiotic nature conservation and social justice.
Presentation Abstract:
Geoheritage, simply, are parts of non-living (abiotic) nature that are deemed “worthy of conservation”. But how do we select which sites should be conserved? Who does the selection and who does the conservation? In the lens of geoheritage, the “scientific” (geologic) value is the primary motivation for the protection of specific landscapes and outcrops.
This presentation focuses on the following geoheritage sites in the Southern Tagalog in the context of the complex conservation issues they face:
1. The “Macolod Corridor” volcano-tectonic region (Taal to Banahaw) is introduced to open conversations on balancing how we consider volcanoes as resource-rich areas, tourist areas, and as areas at-risk.
2. Rizal Karst geosites : Masungi Limestone and Tinipak River are presented as examples of geologically significant sites which are primarily valued through their non-geologic aspects (i.e. biodiversity importance, place attachment) which further strengthens the motivation for their protection against natural degradation and development aggression.
This presentation aims to bring up questions we should be asking in the context of abiotic nature conservation and exemplify the interdisciplinarity of ‘Geoheritage’.