International Year of Planet Earth
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International Year of
Planet Earth
Earth sciences for society
International Year of Planet Earth
IUGS Secretariat
Geological Survey of Norway
N-7491 Trondheim
NORWAY
T + 47 73 90 40 40
F + 47 73 50 22 30
E iugs.secretariat@ngu.no
www.esfs.org
The International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS)
and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) are working together to
promote an International Year of Planet Earth under the
United Nations system.
This leaflet tells you why.
Visit www.esfs.org
Why an International Year of Planet Earth?
Only one Earth
Earth science –
The human race needs its key to sustainability
planet. We depend on it
completely, because we
evolved from it, remain Earth scientists have unravelled many
forever part of it, and can of the Earth’s secrets and have made
great progress in understanding how
exist only by courtesy of
our planet works.
the self-sustaining Earth
System. However, this information is often not
properly used. We often build in the
The more we learn, the wrong places and exploit resources
unsustainably, despite now being able
more we understand that
to forecast many kinds of natural
we must nurture the Earth hazard with considerable accuracy.
as we would our children, We act as though we are still ignorant,
for their sake. when the key to a better life sits in our
hands.
Earth scientists worldwide are ready
and prepared to assist society arrive
at a safer, healthier and wealthier
environment for all.
Who is behind it?
Initiated by the International Union of Geological Sciences
(IUGS) in 2001, the proposed International Year of Planet
Earth was immediately endorsed by UNESCO’s Earth
Science Division, and later by the joint UNESCO-IUGS
International Geoscience Programme (IGCP).
The main aim of the International Year - to demonstrate
the great potential of the Earth sciences to lay the foundations
of a safer, healthier and wealthier society - explains the
Year’s subtitle: Earth sciences for society.
Across a crowded room -
over 180 delegates
attended a high - level
information meeting about
the Year at UNESCO, Paris,
11 February 2004.
The International Year will have two major lines of action:
How will it work?
To achieve maximum political impact, the IUGS-UNESCO • A Science programme to provide answers to specific
team aims to have the International Year proclaimed scientific questions vital in addressing societal needs;
through the UN system, targeting 2006 as the Year itself. • An Outreach programme, to explain and promote the
Its ambitious programmes cannot, however, be implemented many societal benefits of geoscience through education
in twelve months. We expect the Year’s activities to begin and public relations activities.
in 2005 and culminate in 2007.The Year will have two equal
components - science and outreach
Science programme Outreach programme
A panel of 20 eminent geoscientists from all parts of the The Outreach programme will serve the general public.
world decided on a list of eight broad science themes - An Outreach Plan, which will form the tenth and final
Groundwater, Hazards, Earth & Health, Climate, Resources, brochure in the set describing all the Year’s activities,
Megacities, Deep Earth and Ocean. will demonstrate how the Year will help to promote
activities such as:
The next step is to identify substantive science topics with
clear deliverables within each broad theme. A ‘key-text’ • communicating progress in and provisional results
team has now been set up for each, tasked with working of the science topics
out an Action Plan. Each team will produce a text that will • generating involvement of a non-scientific audience
be published as a theme prospectus. These prospectuses • involving the general public in the research
should be available for the 32nd International Geological • sponsoring excursions and tours to geo-
Congress in Florence, August 2004. scientifically interesting places, including
Geoparks and Geosites
A series of Implementation Groups will then be created • commissioning and badging lasting education
to set the work under the eight programmes in motion. resources on Earth science’s significance for society
Every effort will be made to involve specialists from • supporting production of Earth science TV
countries with particular interest in (and need for) these documentary programmes
programmes. • supporting travelling and fixed exhibitions, (e.g., in
museums, ships, (video-) conferences, round table
Financial opportunities to support PhD studies within discussions, etc. on geoscientific/societal topics)
less-developed nations will be explored through the World • generally promoting of the Earth sciences to a wider
Bank and similar institutions, building on the 32 years public.
of IUGS-UNESCO experience within the International
Geoscience Programme (IGCP), from which tens of Currently the Outreach Programme Committee is
thousands of scientists have benefited – notably from responsible for the design, editing and production of
emerging nations. PowerPoint presentations, prospectus brochures (Planet
Earth in our Hands being the first in the final series of 10).
Each science programme will result in a set of products
(“deliverables”). A parallel Outreach Programme will * To find out more about the Outreach Programme, and the
be developed, to help convey news of practical results to eight themes of the Science Programme, go to www.esfs.org,
those who need the answers. or get a free copy of the Year Prospectus Planet Earth in
our Hands (pictured, inside back) from the address on the
back cover.Earth scientists are
Links with other initiatives
Two other Earth-related initiatives are currently in
today’s key players in
preparation: IGY+50 and IPY (International Polar Year).
IGY+50 is an IUGG initiative and IUGG is already a full
building sustainability
partner in the Year of Planet Earth. The provisional
relationship between these three initiatives is shown in
the diagram.
The road to the UN Year
UN International Years may be proclaimed only at autumn
General Assembly meetings, and only at the request of one
(or more) UN member states. The People’s Republic of
China has taken the lead, and the list of political support
from other countries is growing.
A high-level information meeting was organised at
UNESCO on 11 February 2004, to which permanent national
UNESCO delegates and representatives of leading
scientific and non-scientific organisations were invited.
There were 180 participants at that meeting, including
Koichiro Matsura permanent delegates from 58 Member States.
(Director General,
Unesco) at the high-level By early April 2004, eight UN member countries have History and organisation
already expressed political support for the International
information meeting,
Year of Planet Earth: China, Russia, India, Mexico, Brazil, The vision of an International Year of Planet Earth
11 February 2004.
Argentina, Italy and Jordan. Ministerial support has been was first expressed at the 31st International Geological
“I wish you well in collected in Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany and Congress (2000). A Management Team, a Scientific
your deliberations”... The Netherlands, National geoscience communities in Iran, Programme Committee and an Outreach Programme
Mongolia, Japan, Norway, Iceland, India, France, Committee were created.
Bosnia/Herzegovina, Peru, Rumania, Uzbekistan and the
United Kingdom have also expressed support. All Earth- Both parent organisations are represented in the
related unions of ICSU (IUGG, IGU, IUSS and SCL-ILP) have Management Team (MT) in the persons of the President of
agreed to be full partners. The German Senckenberg Museum the IUGS, Prof Eduardo F J de Mulder, and of the Director
and Research Institute, and other German nature museums, of the Earth Science Division of UNESCO, Dr F Wolfgang
are cooperating. Eder. The MT also includes the Chairman of the Scientific
Programme Committee, Prof Edward Derbyshire, and the
A letter will be sent shortly to the UN General Assembly, chairman of the Outreach Programme Committee, Dr Ted
requesting proclamation of the International Year of Nield. The MT is led by Dr Henk J W G Schalke.
Planet Earth in 2006. Further UN member countries will be
approached to provide support as the General Assembly The Management Team is underpinned by a Support Team,
draws near. consisting of members of the IUGS Executive Committee,
representatives of other organisations, and other individuals.We expect that a separate professional organisation For the full period of the International Year
with legal status will be set up to take responsibility for (2005-2007) a minimum total budget of $20,000,000
the implementation of the International Year. is envisaged. The Science Programme will need
a minimum of $1m per theme. The Outreach
Programme will need a minimum of $10m,
Budget and organisation, communication, co-ordination
and publication a minimum of $2m.
Running costs during the Feasibility Phase (2001) were
almost entirely covered by the home organisation of the We expect to source these funds from commercial
IUGS President, TNO-NITG (Geological Survey of the companies, international banks, national science
Netherlands). The direct costs (excluding salaries) for the foundations and others.
Preparatory Phase (2002 and 2003) amounted to about
$135,000 and were mainly covered by IUGS, UNESCO,
Shell International, and TNO-NITG. The services of To find out more
Dr Ted Nield were provided free by The Geological Society
of London. The budget foreseen for the Implementation Consult the Prospectus for the Year –
Phase (2004) is approximately $280,000. Planet Earth in our hands – Earth sciences for
society (picture, right) or visit www.esfs.org
Editing Ted Nield
Photography Ted Nield
Design André van de Waal,
Coördesign, Leiden
United Nations Educational Scientific
© April 2004 and Cultural Organisation
Earth Sciences for Society Foundation,
Leiden, The Netherlands www.esfs.orgYou can also read
