VIRTUAL EVENT – The Future of Geoscience summit

Date: 10 June 2020

The number of students choosing to study geological or Earth sciences at A-level and university is at a record low, and perhaps indicative of a problem in the perception of geoscience in our wider society. 

The climate is changing, both in the UK and globally, and with it comes a collective call for change to more sustainable energy, food sources, travel and trade, as well as for changes in our manufacturing industries and natural resource consumption. 

Geoscience is integral to combatting climate change and in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals. Our challenge is now to change the narrative in the public eye, the media and schools to ensure that there are future generations of geoscientists who will play valuable roles within our society.

This free-to-attend virtual summit will delve into the detail of the public perception of geoscience, as well as in the media, education and business. It will bring together a mix of professionals, entrepreneurs, teachers and lecturers, public speakers and civil servants in a series of panel sessions that will take your questions and debate the statements and opinions you raise over the coming weeks. 

The outputs from this summit will be taken into a more focused Geology Student Enrolment Summit on 24 June, and from there a working group/committee with representation from across our society will be formed.

This is an opportunity to engage with this challenge – geoscience is quite literally our past, present and future.

Registration

Registration is free and is open now via Eventbrite.

Call for contributions

This event will be as interactive and inclusive as can be practically allowed. Although it will not be possible to stream live questions from the attendees during the summit, we are asking for all attendees to send in questions, opinions and discussion points relevant to each session prior to the event. A selection of the contributions will be put to the panelists and will form the basis for discussion and debate.

Initially we are seeking contributions which are more general in scope, but as the event approaches and further details around each of the three sessions are released, do feel free to contribute more specific questions and opinions. All contributions will be valuable – even if they are not put to the panel during this event, they will be collated and utilised at the Geology Student Enrolment Summit and in the subsequent action plan.

For further information please go to https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/FutureGeoSummit