In order to implement the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Popularization of Science and Technology, the Outline for Action Plan of the Whole People’s Science Quality and the Outline for the Action of Popularization of Land and Resources Science and Technology during the “12th Five-Year” Period, bring the demonstration role of major science popularization activities into play and improve the influence and effect of science popularization activities, Stone Forest Scenic Area will carry out New Media (WeChat) Communication Activity of Karst Geoscience Knowledge from November to December 2015.

Organized by Stone Forest Scenic Area Management Bureau, the activity consists of three parts:

I. “Rewarding Q&A for Stone Forest karst geoscience knowledge”, lasting for ten days;

II. “WeChat Guess & Win for the mystery of karst”, lasting for ten days;

III. “Recruiting science popularization talents for two-day tour of Stone Forest free of charge to write science popularization travel notes to win rewards”, lasting for 25 days.

All the above activities will be initiated by the official public WeChat account of Stone Forest Scenic area “Stone Forest Scenic Area Management Bureau”, with generous rewards and simple way of participation. For the specific time of activity, way of participation and reward setting please refer to the public account “Stone Forest Scenic Area Management Bureau”.

Spreading karst geoscience knowledge to the public is an important role of Stone Forest as a world natural heritage site and a world geopark; while WeChat is an instrument popular among the modern people which can spread information fast with low cast and extensive spreading scope compared to traditional means of science popularization publicity. Spreading of science popularization knowledge by combining the WeChat platform with communication activity may attract more WeChat users to pay attention to the karst geoscience knowledge released on the public account of Stone Forest Scenic Area and it may expand the influence. Therefore, the implementation of the science knowledge spreading activity with the new media of WeChat will definitely promote the construction of Stone Forest Science Popularization Base and will play the role of demonstration for science popularization.

Sword-shaped Stone Forest

Stone Forest (photographed by Li Lanying)

The Greater Stone Forest, Stone Screen   

Science popularization activity and exhibition

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Stone Forest is a core display place for world natural heritages and the essence of the world karst landform!

Stone Forest Geopark is a geopark led by karst landform landscapes, located at 70 kilometers southwest of Kunming City, Yunnan Province, with the total area of 350 square kilometers. The Geopark is led by the exposed rock landforms of sword shape, pillar shape, tower shape and mushroom shape evolved from limestones in the past 270 million years. In particular, the stone pillar clusters with the height of 20-50 meters looks like a forest at distance, known as “Stone Forest”. It is an outstanding example to reflect the main stages of the history of earth evolution. With the antiquity, complexity, multi-period and rareness of its development and evolution, the aesthetics of rock shapes and the diversity of landscape forms, it has been a typical example for the evolution of such karst landform sites in the world and the place of origin for the term “Stone Forest”. It is deemed as the best natural phenomenon and the best reference for such karst landforms in the world.

During the Permian period, it was beach-shallow sea environment here with the limestone and dolostone of the thickness of thousands of meters deposited, which laid the foundation for development of the stone forest landform of the park. Later it became land due to the uplifting effect of crustal movement, corroded repeatedly by underground water and surface water along fissures of the rocks and finally developed into the stone forest landform and landscape of diversified types of combination. Stone Forest is one of the earliest national key scenic areas, national geoparks, world geoparks and national 5A scenic areas as well as a world natural heritage site and land and resources science popularization base.

Bringing the function and role of science popularization education base into full play and promoting the deep and continuous going of science popularization and education is the premier task of Stone Forest Education Base. Stone Forest Science Popularization and Education Base is devoted to constructing for tourists and the public a science popularization base participated in by the whole people to popularize karst geoscience and ecological environment science in all aspects. Therefore, it is necessary to actively and extensively carry out characteristic and effective science popularization activities close to the practice, life and the mass based on the principle of public welfare.