A three-day international conference of UNESCO Global Geoparks came to a close in Qeshm on Monday after a tour of the island’s geographically unique natural sites.
According to Alireza Amri-Kazemi, head of Qeshm Geopark, the meeting aimed to highlight the regional role of Qeshm Geopark in promoting the development of such natural sites and share experience with other countries that are seeking to register global geoparks. It was the first such meeting hosted by Iran’s largest Persian Gulf island, which also featured training workshops, ISNA reported.
The event was attended by senior officials from the Department of Environment, Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization, and the Industries Ministry among other relevant entities.
Foreign participants included Nicolas Surros, chief of the Global Geopark Network, Secretary of UNESCO’s International Geoscience Program Patrick James McKeever and Esther Kuisch Laroche, head of the UNESCO Cluster Office in Tehran.
The conference brought together 250 local participants and representatives from over 20 foreign countries.
Qeshm Geopark was initially added to the Global Geoparks Network in 2006, but was dropped in 2013 due to certain problems. It managed to regain its global status last year.
After years of back and forth and discussions with UNESCO experts, Iranian authorities submitted the geopark’s dossier for review in 2016 and it received the provisional approval during the Seventh International Conference on UNESCO’s Global Geoparks Network in Torquay, England, held on Sept. 27-30, 2016. The decision was finalized on May 5, 2017.
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