Results of the geointerpretation research in the frame of the Danube GeoTour project Rezultati raziskave o geointerpretaciji v okviru projekta Danube GeoTour

Crossborder Karavanke/Karawanken UNESCO Global Geopark was established in 2011, and in 2013, it became a member of the European(EGN) and Global Geopark Network (GGN). Its administrative boundary follows the boundaries of 14 municipalities on the Slovenian and Austrian sides. Since the early beginning, the sustainable tourism throughout the region has been developed. An important component of the Geopark activities is applying for various funding to support the regional development through the transnational cooperation between European Geoparks or through Geopark-specific projects. An example of the transnational cooperation is the project Valorisation of geo-heritage for sustainable and innovative tourism development of Danube Geoparks. Eight Geoparks of the Danube region participate in this project with the acronym Danube GeoTour, implemented in the INTERREG Danube Transnational Programme 2014-2020. The main goal of the project is establishment of the joint Danube GeoTour designed to strengthen cooperation between the regions’ Geoparks and act as an innovative tourism product to accelerate visibility and tourist visits in the Geoparks. Common strategy for sustainable management of tourism pressures will form the basis for creating innovative geoproducts. Sharing experiences, testing pilot geotourism products and new interpretative approaches should increase local inhabitants’ engagement, Geopark management capacities and lower the quality gap between Danube and other European Geoparks. Within the Danube GeoTour project, Karavanke/Karawanken UNESCO Global Geopark implemented a research “New competences in geoheritage interpretation”. The aim of the project is to find out how to improve skills and quality of the heritage presentation in the participating Geoparks by transnational learning interaction, and to complement the uniqueness and character of the overall Danube GeoTour product. The main research objective was the introduction of new interpretation trends, techniques and methods which are used in the presentation of geoheritage, observed within and outside the participating Geoparks.


Introduction
Geology is a science concerned with the origin, history, composition and structure of our planet Earth.Without doubt this is one of the most important branches of Earth sciences, but often neglected, while geology-related topics are not appropriately visualized to general public.With the use of suitable presentation technique, we can make often too complicated geological phenomena more interesting and easier to understand.
In general, there are two reasons why we need presentation of geological heritage.Firstly, our geological heritage is important in underpinning the famous landscapes and biodiversity that we have.Despite this fact, the geological heritage is farther from the hearts and minds of the population than other more easily identifiable aspects of the natural heritage, namely the flora and fauna.However, similar to the biodiversity, the geological heritage is vulnerable to the activities of mankind, which may damage it.The damage is long-term and difficult to be remediated, often even impossible.Therefore, only those people and local communities who are aware of their geological heritage and can both identify with it and relate to it, can contribute to its conservation and sustainable development.Geological heritage presentation has a clear role in establishing the real links between the bio-and geodiversity and the need to preserve them both equally.The second reason for the requirement of geological presentation, is the opportunity the geodiversity offers in touristic efforts at local or national level.Good explanation and presentation of geological phenomena will enhance the visitor experience and help boost geotourism (Internet 1).
A significant role in the geo-presentation and geo-tourism have today Geoparks.Geopark is a territory with a great geological heritage, important not only at the national level, but also global.They are a relatively young establishment.The European Geoparks Network was established in the year 2000 by four Geoparks: Reserve Geologique de Haute-Provence (France), Natural History Museum of Lesvos Petrified Forest -Lesvos island (Greece), Geopark Gerolstein/ Vulkaneifel (Germany) and Maestrazgo Cultural Park (Spain UNESCO patronage on Geoparks began in 2001.In November 2015, the 195 Member States of UNESCO set-up the creation of a new labelthe UNESCO Global Geoparks.According to the definition, UNESCO Global Geoparks are single, unified geographical areas where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed with a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development (Internet 2).Functioning in the same way as museums, zoos, parks and science centres, geoparks serve as centres for informal learning, providing visitors with geological, historical and cultural stories.They offer these opportunities through interpretation programmes, guided tours, exhibits, signage, brochures, lectures and online sites (Buhay et al., 2015).
In the last decade, the multi-medias increasingly impact the way of spreading the knowledge and represent a new modern approach in geo-presentation.Today, we live increasingly in a digital society.If we want to reach and engage wide audience, it is important to select the most appropriate means of communication.This does not mean abandoning old methods, but rather developing and introducing additional approaches.Digital technologies can provide off-and online presentation, as well as on-or offsite experiences.It is a major and growing trend in museums and education.Numerous recent digital heritage projects have demonstrated the usefulness of the information and communications technologies (Boile et al., 2014;Antlej, 2014).The new technologies enable the creation of virtual databases using virtual globes -e.g., Google Earth -and other personal-use geomatics applications (smartphones, tablets, PDAs) for accessing geological heritage information in "real time" for scientific, educational, and cultural purposes via a virtual geological itinerary.With these technologies, Geoparks and other relevant institutions can create mapped and georeferenced geosites (Martínez-Graña et al., 2013).
The development of the Geoparks goes hand in hand with the vision of Interpret Europe (European Association for Heritage Interpretation).High quality heritage presentation is the key to foster broader understanding of -and respect for -all natural and cultural heritage.This opens up new possibilities for cooperation in the field of environmental education and interpretation between Interpret Europe and the Geoparks, as well as the European Geoparks Network.Geoparks must look forward to developing new networks to foster creativity and to drive innovations in heritage presentation and the Geoparks must try to bring geo-presentation to the next level with the use of new technologies (multi-media, virtual reality, etc.), for visualisation and presentation of complex geological phenomena and processes, and popularisation of geological science (Hartmann et al., 2012;Bedjanič et al., 2014).
Eight Geoparks of the Danube region participate in the project Danube GeoTour -Valorisation of geo-heritage for sustainable and innovative tourism development of Danube Geoparks, implemented in the INTERREG Danube Transnational Programme 2014-2020.Karavanke/Karawanken UNESCO Global Geopark, as the coordinator of the Workpackage Geointerpretation, implements a research about New competences in geoheritage interpretation.The aims of the research were (a) the introduction of new approaches, which are used in the geoheritage presentation and are observed within and outside the participating Geoparks; (b) to improve skills and quality of the heritage presentation in the participating Geoparks by transnational learning interaction; (c) to complement the uniqueness and character of the overall Danube GeoTour product.

Research New competences in geoheritage interpretation -data collection tools
The main aim of the research New competences in geoheritage interpretation was to find out new trends and competences in geo-presentation and geo-communication as well as new specific presentation methods of 8 selected geological challenges in the Danube region, i.e. tectonics, volcanology, geohazards, geology over time, water in time, metamorphic processes and rocks, geomorphology and dialogue between Earth & humans.For this purpose, following data collection tools was used: 1.In order to gain better insight into existing presentation methods and technologies, used in participating Geoparks and into the quality of presentation the geological heritage, a Questionnaire concerning geo-presentation practices in project partners Geoparks was prepared.Questions were mainly related to the existing geological heritage presentation in Geopark -how does Geopark presents its geological heritage, which of selected geological processes/challenges are described in personal or non-personal geo-presentation, what kind of personal (guided tours in different trails and paths, training for guides/ rangers/interprets, educational seminars for educational institutions, workshops for children, …) and non-personal (booklets/books, information panels, audio-visual equipment, info-points, info-centres, …) geo-presentation are used in Geopark, ...  3.An online research -A screening of the most recent developments, technologies and best practices of interpretative methods applicable to Danube Geoparks, was carried out, to find examples of best practice in the presentation of selected geological challenges all over the world.Each of the participating Geoparks addressed one geological presentation challenge (problem) that is common, well investigated and presented in the partner territory.At the same time, all selected challenges are typical for the Danube region Geoparks.
4. Data collection in the frame of the joint geo-presentation training -While one of the main ideas of the Danube GeoTour project is learning interaction between project partners, the joint geo-interpretation training was organised for key Danube Geopark personnel responsible for geoguide service and/or presentation (fig.2).The training covered the following 3 topics: familiarizing with newest developments, methods and best practiceslearning from others; exchange of different personal experiences and practices in the presentation of the selected top 8 interpretation challenges -this was implemented in the form of a workshop with a goal to learn from each other; modes of communicating complex geological facts in easy-to-understand language.As part of this topic, a vocabulary of English and all partners' language terms commonly used in geo-presentation was prepared.

Results and discussion
The research New competences in geoheritage interpretation geographically covers 7 countries in the Danube region.These represent territories of project partners who contributed best practices, experiences, as well as gained new skills.Moreover, best practices outside of the programme area were researched, being EU or third countries, which were gathered and exchanged at the various EGN/GGN international events.These countries are: Ireland, United Kingdom, Scotland, France, Germany, Italy, Greece, Denmark, Spain, Canada, United States, China and Japan.In total, research includes more than 70 cases of best practice examples in geo-presentation (Table 1 and Table 2).
The idea of the joint geointerpretation training was learning interaction and sharing concrete practical examples from other Geoparks and nature parks, which all lead to better insight into new presentation trends and improved practical presentation skills through learning new presentation and communication methods.This will significantly open perspectives as well as strengthen the competences of individual parks management and the Danube Geopark Tour partnership as a whole and in comparison to other more advanced Geoparks within the EGN and GGN Network.
In the frame of the joint geo-interpretation training, all participants (Geopark Idrija, Geopark Papuk, Geopark Hateg, Geopark Styrian Eisenwurzen, Balaton-Bakony Geopark, Bohemian Paradise Geopark, Geopark Karavanke) shared  The aim of the joint geo-interpretation training was that all participating Geoparks became familiarized with the modern methods and new trends in geo-presentation and with the best practices from all over the world.This transnational dimension of the training was very useful; each Geopark found out new approaches for geo-presentation through learning from other participants and also got new ideas for heritage presentation -some of the given approaches/ideas are presented below: • Objects that can be weighed, touched, kept in hand are memorable elements of the presentation; • gestures, tone of voice and expressive words, its magnitude and the events that accompanied it can make the explanation much more interesting, more fun and more memorable for the visitors; • use not too much information and facts on the panels; a mix of maps, graphics and pictures with a good short information text is the best way; • avoiding the overloading visitors with many scientific data in short period of time; • it is important to connect/compare information with some familiar facts/events in the real life; • active participation of visitors can not only enhance their experience but also helps them to remember important facts more easily; • involve children and you will automatically involve adults; • combination of personal (guided visits) and non-personal (use of illustrations, publications, audio-visual equipment, multi-media, etc.) presentation methods -although the geo-heritage presentation today uses a range of communications media and is delivered in many different ways, it is observed that the direct person-to-person contact is still the most efficient; • ideally, presentation is carried out on two levels: for children and for adults, with different approaches; • effective geo-presentation with the use of interactive, constructive learning, explaination of complex topics and ideas connected to a site's main themes in simple words and images that are easily accessible for non-expert audiences.
As the result of the geo-interpretation training, questionnaire, field trip (visits of several information centres in Austria) and on-line research, several recommendations were made, which should be followed when presenting geo- ) heritage to the audience in more efficient and quality way: Proper geo-presentation planning (Why are we doing this?Who is it for?What will we presented?How will we do it?How will it be managed?How will it be monitored and evaluated?);start of the geo-presentation with the basics; the combination of personal and non-personal presentation; personal contact; involvement of the audience; suitability and accessibility of the geo-presentation for different target groups; explanation of complex geological phenomena in simplified and interesting way, in easily under-standable language, supported with illustrative materials, other interpretative tools or technologies; active training programmes for Geopark personnel and geotour guides; supportive infrastructure for comprehensive geo-presentationvisitors centres, interpretation points, learning path, etc. Raising the multi-media and new technologies, such as QR codes and augemented reality simplifies the way of presentation of geological heritage to the public and helps scientists interpret difficult geological phenomena and processes.Geoparks need educated guides, and educa-tion for them has to be guaranteed.Geopark staff must be trained as geoguides and interpreters to assure high quality guiding and programmes, able to explain complex geological processes in easily understandable language.Good guide can encourage excitement and curiosity, link presentation to personal experiences from everyday life, disclosure of new insights and wider sense, using different and as effective communication tools as possible.New presentation approaches will increase local inhabitant´s engagement, Geopark management capacities and lower the quality gap between Danube and other European UNESCO Global Geoparks -this is beside the joint Danube GeoTour, designed to strengthen cooperations between the region´s Geoparks and creating innovative geo-tourism products to accelerate visibility and tourist visits in the Geoparks, one of the main Danube GeoTour project result.

Conclusions
The goal of the research was to improve the knowledge-base and exchange practices on quality geoheritage presentation in participating Geoparks with special focus on 8 selected geological challenges.The research provides a guideline in every day practice of Geoparks and other heritage sites within or outside Danube programme area.Participating partners identified contemporary presentation methods and technologies and also best practice examples of geo-presentation in their Geoparks and abroad.Through training and creative process, new ideas were born giving us sometimes completely different perspective to the presentation of the geological heritage.
In the frame of the research, we draw out lessons learnt, several recommendations and new trends that will be useful for project partners, as well as other Geoparks, natural protected areas and sites outside the project partnership designing presentation points or centres.
2. With the objective to get a deep insight into the current developments in presentation of natural phenomena in other protected areas, several information centres in Austria have been visited, as the examples of best pactice in the geo-presentation (Nationalparkzentrum Hohe Tauern in Mittersill, Spring Water Museum in Wildalpen, Visitor centre Erz der Alpen) (fig.1).

Fig. 1 .
Fig. 1.Field visit of info centres in Austria.
).In 2004, the Global Geoparks Network (GGN) was founded, when 17 European and 8 Chinese Geoparks came together.As of April 2018, 140 Geoparks in 38 Member States are currently members of the Global Geoparks Network.70 Geoparks from 23 European Countries form today's European Geoparks Network (EGN).

Table 1 .
Best practices from third countries.
best practices and methods they use for presentation of geological heritage, especially for their selected geological challenge (tectonics, volcanology, geohazards, geology over time, water in time, metamorphic rocks and processes, geomorphology, dialogue between Earth and human) and visited a good practice example in the Karavanke/Karawanken UNESCO Global Geopark -visitor centre »World of geology« in Bad Eisenkappel/Železna Kapla with the presentation of different kinds of demonstration methods and applications -Geopuls System, Geoclock, GeoGames, etc.This visit was very good insight into the presentation of geological heritage through different kinds of methods and technologies; a combination of personal (guided visit) and non-personal (booklets/books, audio-visual equipment, info-centre) presentation of geological heritage was also presented.

Table 2 .
Best practices for 8 selected geological challenges.Results of the geointerpretation research in the frame of the Danube GeoTour project