Case studies associated with the 10 major geodiversity-related topics

Abstract

This paper outlines the 10 major topics related to geodiversity that have emerged since the concept was first introduced in 1993, 30 years ago. After a short introduction, each of the 10 topics is then illustrated by a relevant case study. The 10 topics (italics) and their case studies (bold) are as follows: 1. Celebrating , International Geodiversity Day ; 2. Measurement/Assessment , Potential role of remote sensing ; 3. Natural Capital and Geosystem Services , Coastal geosystem services ; 4. Biodiversity , Mangue de Pedra, Brazil ; 5. Geomaterials , The circular economy ; 6. Geotourism , World's top geotourism sites? ; 7. Geoheritage , Landscape restoration ; 8. National Geoconservation , Trump golf course and an SSSI, Scotland ; 9. World Heritage Sites and Global Geoparks , Azores Global Geopark, Portugal ; 10. Sustainability , Xitle Volcano, Mexico City . It is concluded that, given the way in which geodiversity has developed as a concept, leading to new insights and avenues of research and advancing our understanding of the world since its first use, it clearly now constitutes a significant, geoscientific paradigm. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue ‘Geodiversity for science and society’.