GSNZ International Geoethics Day Seminar

International Geoethics Day was established by the International Association for the Promotion of Geoethics in 2017. The aim of the day is to raise the awareness of the geoscience community and society as a whole about the importance of ethical, social and cultural aspects of geoscience knowledge, research, practice, education and communication.

This year we are celebrating International Geoethics Day with a panel of speakers who will provide perspectives and insights based on their combined wealth of international experience:

Does Geo-Ethics Serve a Purpose?

with Prof Michael Petterson, Auckland University of Technology | Te Wānanga Aronui o Tāmaki Makau Rau

Michael is a geologist who has worked for much of his career with the British Geological Survey (BGS) ending up as Programme Manager (Economic Minerals & Geochemical Baselines) and Executive Assistant Director. Michael has also taken on positions as Professor of Applied Geology at the University of Leicester (UK) and Professor of Geology at the Auckland University of Technology (NZ), and Honorary Professor at the University of the South Pacific (Fiji). He was Director of the Geoscience Division of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, based in Fiji, and working with 22 Pacific Island States. Much of his career has involved applying geoscience to international development, particularly in the Pacific, Caribbean-South America, and South-Central Asian regions. Michael has worked in areas such as disaster and risk and climate change, natural resource management, capacity building, institutional strengthening, education and research, and policy development, collaborating with numerous Development Agencies and National Governments, down to grass roots community levels. His technical areas of research include island arcs, crustal evolution & continental collision, large igneous plateaus, geohazards, geoscience & Society, and Geoscience and International Development. Michael's talk will seek to answer the question Does Geo-Ethics Serve a Purpose? with particular reference to working internationally.

Ethical considerations for developing messaging after a volcanic eruption: case studies from Vanuatu and Tonga

with Assoc Prof Carol Stewart, Massey University | Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa

Carol is an Associate Professor in Environmental Health in the College of Health at Massey University with strong links to the Joint Centre for Disaster Research. Her research interests include environmental health consequences of natural hazards and disasters; volcanic hazard impacts; volcanic ash chemistry; environmental, agricultural and health impacts of volcanic eruptions; developing volcanic ash hazard assessment methods; and vulnerability of water and wastewater infrastructure to natural hazards and disasters. She has been fortunate enough to carry out volcanic eruption impact assessments in Chile, Argentina, Ecuador, Guatemala, Vanuatu and New Zealand, including contributing to the MFAT-funded scientific response to the 2017-2018 Ambae eruptions in Vanuatu as well as scientific assistance following the Hunga eruption, Tonga, in January 2022.  

The World We Want: Can Geoscientists Help Us Get There?

with Dr Joel Gill, Cardiff University | Prifysgol Caerdydd

Joel is an interdisciplinary geoscientist, integrating natural and social science approaches to address issues relating to sustainable development and disaster risk reduction (DRR). He has a keen interest in improving the application of geology to international development, founding the charity “Geology for Global Development” in 2011 after returning from working on a range of water projects in East Africa.

Please register in order to receive the Zoom link to attend this online event (and ignore the prompt for dietary requirements...)

Note that due to timezone differences some talks may be pre-rerecorded.