Geological sciences union celebrates 50 years
IUGS is one of 30 scientific union Members of ICSU—one of eight Unions who share interests in earth science related topics—and represents an estimated 1 million earth scientists around the world.
Invited participants at the event included: UNESCO Assistant Director General for Natural Sciences Dr Gretchen Kalonji; French Academy of Sciences representative Dr Marie-Lise Chanin; IUGS French National Committee Chair Pierre Mauriaud; and many other heads of international organizations, learned societies and geological surveys.
ICSU’s Executive Director, Deliang Chen, congratulated IUGS and remarked that: ‘[s]ince its establishment, and its membership of the ICSU family, IUGS has proved to be a vital and responsive champion of discovery and debate in the earth sciences.’
‘ICSU looks forward to continued cooperation with, and support from, IUGS in the coming years. I wish you every success as you not only discuss the past and present successes of IUGS, but also give thought to the future.’
IUGS is managed by a General Council from some 121 countries around the world. National Academies, Geological Surveys and universities typically represent the official adhering bodies to the Union. Since its inception in 1961 the IUGS has also attracted over 50 Affiliated Organizations from around the world. During its 50 years, the mission and direction of the Union has evolved from the study of traditional basic geoscience research to addressing timely and socially relevant topics such as education, capacity building, training, and thematic issues such as geohazards, geoinformation management, energy and sustainable development.
- For more on IUGS, visit the IUGS website
- Opening remarks by ICSU’s Executive Director, Deliang Chen
