8 Dec 2022

On December 7, the 2022 Annual Meeting of China UNESCO Global Geoparks officially opened in Xiangxi Prefecture, Hunan Province. This meeting was guided by the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, the Forestry Bureau of Hunan Province, and the People's Government of Xiangxi Autonomous Prefecture, and co-organized by the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, China Geoparks Network, Global Geoparks Network, and the Xiangxi UNESCO Global Geopark, and the annual meeting was held for the first time online and onsite due to the Pandemic.

Representatives from 41 China UNESCO Global Geoparks, 6 aspiring UGGp, and the relevant institutions participated in the meeting, to exchange knowledge and experiences on geoaprk building and operation.

provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government) forestry and grassland department gathered online to share experience and seek sustainable development of the world geopark.

Yuan Xiaohong from the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Wang Min from the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Jin Xiaochi, vice chairman of the Executive Board of the GGN delivered speeches on the opening ceremony. Zhang Jianping, member of the Executive Board of GGN and professor of China University of Geosciences, and Zhang Zhiguang, senior evaluator of UNESCO Global Geoparks, all made keynote presentations online.

Representative of Shilin delivered a presentation themed "Shilin UGGp significantly promotes local sustainable development" and conducted exchanges among geoparks. The meeting is the most important event for China UNESCO Global Geoparks.