Chairmen: Augusto Auler (Americas), Zhang Cheng (Asia/Oceania), Zoran Stevanovic (Europe/Africa)
KC 50th ANNIVERSARY CEREMONY
As decided in our last official meeting in IAH Malaga 2019, as part of our 50th anniversary there will be a ceremony to honor three long standing KC members for their lifetime achievements in karst science. One scientist for each geographical area covered by the KC were unanimously approved:
- Dr. Derek Ford (Americas)
- Dr. Petar Milanovic (Europe/Africa)
- Dr. Yuan Daoxian (Asia/Oceania)
The ceremony will take place during the UNESCOKarst 2020, in Bowling Green, USA, on Thursday May 21 after the workshop, closing the formal meetings (and before the final banquet). Full details will be provided shortly.
ANNUAL KARST COMMISSION MEETING IN BOWLING GREEN
The organizers of the UNESCO Karst 2020, the official meeting of the Karst Commission in 2020 (see Events below) have announced that our annual meeting will take place at 17:45 on Tuesday, May 19, following the technical presentations. More details will be provided later.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS
Choral event in Ireland
Our colleague Laurence Gill is announcing an event entitled "Inception Horizon - a Celebration of Subterranean Karst Cave Systems". It will be held on Saturday, March 07 in the Museum Building, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland.
It will feature an original commissioned choral work by Norah Walsh (performed by the Mellow Tonics Choir) that aims to capture the essence of how such intricate subterranean labyrinths are created and shaped by moving water.
The performance will start with a piece on the uilleann pipes (Irish bagpipes) followed by a series of presentations of how such karst systems evolve, by geologists and hydrogeologists, and linked to artistic works. This will be accompanied by photos and film of karst features projected onto the wall of the Museum Building which have been produced in collaboration with a graphic designer. There will also be a film about caving followed by the unveiling of a new sculpture in limestone commissioned for the event by Helen O’Connell, a sculptor who is also member of the Mellow Tonics choir. Finally, the composer Norah Walsh will describe the inspiration and structure of the new choral composition, as well as the journey over the past few months which has included taking the choir to the Burren for a weekend to be led through non-tourist cave networks. The new choral piece Inception Horizon will then be performed as the finale of the event.
This project has been a unique collaboration between scientists / engineers and artists which will hopefully increase public perception and understanding about these fascinating networks beneath the ground, as well as providing a stimulating artistic experience.
Karst Session at EGU General Assembly, Vienna
There will be a karst session at EGU, entitled "Field and modelling approaches for the assessment of hydrogeological and engineering problems in the complex karst environment". It will be convened by our members Hervé Jourde, Joanna Doummar, Mario Parise, Natasa Ravbar and Xiaoguang Wang. EGU will take place between May 3-8, 2020 in Vienna, Austria.
2020 Karst Commission Geotrip
The 2020 Geotrip will occur between May 11-15 in Yellowstone National Park, USA. The meeting point will be the town of Gardiner and the nearest airport is in Bozeman, Montana. As usual, there will be no fees and the participants will take care of the accommodation, food and transport (through rented cars). The Geotrip has been scheduled to be linked with our official meeting in 2020, the UNESCO Karst. For more information please contact Augusto Auler at [This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.]
UNESCO Karst 2020 Conservation of Fragile Karst Resources: A Workshop on Sustainability and Community
The workshop is being organized by KC member Chris Groves and Lee Anne Bledsoe together with a large group of supporters. It will take place between May 18-22, 2020, in Bowling Green, Kentucky, USA, a classical karst area with the world’s longest cave at Mammoth Cave National Park. A pre-conference field trip is being offered. The meeting will also celebrate the 50th anniversary of the IAH Karst Commission and a special event is being planned. We encourage all our members and friends to attend. This workshop will be the official KC meeting for 2020. For more information, please check the website at: [https://unescokarst2020.com/]
KARSYS course offered in two locations
The KARSYS course, offered in 2018 and 2019 by our Swiss members Pierre-Yves Jeannin and Arnauld Malard will take place in two locations in the United States in May 2020. Please check the flyer below for further information.
7th International CourseCharacterization and Engineering of Karst Aquifers: Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina
The International Course and Field Seminar Characterization and Engineering of Karst Aquifers will take place in the two Dinaric "karst countries" at Žabljak-Durmitor Mt., Virpazar-Skadar Lake in Montenegro and in Trebinje in Bosnia & Herzegovina. The course will run from 11 to 20 June 2020. The tentative schedule, application form, and other details are available at [http://www.karst.edu.rs/].
28th International Karstological School "Classical Karst"
The 2020 edition of the well known Karstological School in Postojna (Slovenia) will take place between June 15 - 19. The main topic will be REGIONAL KARSTOLOGY - LOCAL AND GENERAL ASPECTS. The first circular has been released and deadline for abstract submission is February 15, 2020. For further information please contact the organizers at [This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.] or check the Karst Institute website at [http://izrk.zrc-sazu.si/en].
Karst Field Studies in Mammoth Cave
The 2020 edition of Karst Field Studies Program in Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, USA will take place during the summer. Among the courses, our member Chris Groves (together with Lee Anne Bledsoe) will offer the week long Karst Hydrologeology Course. It will take place between July 5-10. For more information visit [http://www.karstfieldstudies.com] or contact Dr. Leslie North at [This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.].
Karst Sessions at 34th International Geographical Congress
The International Geographical Congress, organized by the Ingernatinoal Geographical Union will take place in Istambul, Turkey, on 17-21 August 2020. Our KC colleagues from Asia will be organizing two karst sessions:
S1 - Global Karst Critical Zone. Chaired by Jianhua Cao.
S2 - Land Use Planning in Karst Regions. Chaired by Eko Haryono.
For more information on the karst sessions please check [http://www.igc2020.org/en/KARST%20COMMISSION.html.]
Deadline for abstracts is January 13, 2020. For more information see below.
EUROKARST 2021
Arguably, the most traditional karst hydrogeology meeting, the Eurokarst 2021, the European Conference on Karst Hydrogeology and Carbonate Reservoirs, will take place in Malaga, Spain, in June 22-24, 2021. This meeting will host the 2021 official meeting of our commission.