A GIS‑supported Multidisciplinary Database for the Management of UNESCO Global Geoparks: the Courel Mountains Geopark (Spain)

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dc.contributor.affiliationUniversidade de Santiago de Compostela. Departamento de Xeografía
dc.contributor.affiliationUniversidade de Santiago de Compostela. Departamento de Historia
dc.contributor.affiliationUniversidade de Santiago de Compostela. Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigación en Tecnoloxías Ambientais (CRETUS)
dc.contributor.authorBallesteros Posada, Daniel
dc.contributor.authorCaldevilla, Pablo
dc.contributor.authorVila, Ramón
dc.contributor.authorBarros, Xosé Carlos
dc.contributor.authorRodríguez-Rodríguez, Laura
dc.contributor.authorGarcía-Ávila, Manuel
dc.contributor.authorSahuquillo, Elvira
dc.contributor.authorLlorente, Miguel
dc.contributor.authorDíez Ferrer, José Bienvenido
dc.contributor.authorFuertes-Fuente, Mercedes
dc.contributor.authorTimón‑Sánchez, Susana M.
dc.contributor.authorLombera Hermida, Arturo
dc.contributor.authorÁlvarez, Iván
dc.contributor.authorPérez‑Cáceres, Irene
dc.contributor.authorAcebo, Manuel
dc.contributor.authorOrche Amaré, Pilar
dc.contributor.authorGarcía García, Jesús Horacio
dc.contributor.authorMartín‑González, Fidel
dc.contributor.authorAlemparte, Martín
dc.date.accessioned2026-01-13T11:10:19Z
dc.date.available2026-01-13T11:10:19Z
dc.date.issued2022-03-18
dc.descriptionNeste traballo abordamos o deseño, construción e aplicación dunha base de datos multidisciplinar soportada por un Sistema de Información Xeográfica (SIX) como ferramenta integral para a xestión dun Xeoparque Mundial da UNESCO. O estudo céntrase no Xeoparque das Montañas do Courel e responde á necesidade de integrar, organizar e facer operativa unha gran cantidade de información científica, técnica e patrimonial de natureza moi diversa, xerada ao longo de décadas por múltiples disciplinas e a diferentes escalas espaciais. O noso enfoque baséase nun proceso sistemático de recompilación de datos procedentes de fontes públicas oficiais, bases de datos científicas, traballos previos e nova cartografía xerada especificamente mediante traballo de campo, fotointerpretación e análises SIX. Un dos aspectos centrais do traballo é a homoxeneización, revisión crítica e validación destes datos por un equipo multidisciplinar, garantindo a coherencia terminolóxica, espacial e conceptual do conxunto da base de datos. A base de datos estrutúrase en coberturas independentes organizadas por bloques temáticos (datos técnicos, ciencias da Terra, biodiversidade e patrimonio cultural), o que permite a súa reutilización flexible e a xeración de novos produtos cartográficos e analíticos adaptados a distintos públicos e obxectivos. A elaboración dun conxunto amplo de mapas temáticos serve tanto para exemplificar o potencial analítico do SIX como para demostrar a súa utilidade práctica na xestión do territorio. O traballo non se limita á descrición da base de datos, senón que amosa a súa aplicabilidade real en procesos clave do xeoparque: apoio á toma de decisións, planificación estratéxica, deseño de accións educativas e turísticas, produción de materiais divulgativos coherentes, avaliación de riscos naturais, identificación de valores xeolóxicos e culturais, e definición de prioridades de xeoconservación. Desta maneira, propoñemos un modelo replicable de uso do SIX como infraestrutura de coñecemento para a gobernanza de xeoparques, reforzando a conexión entre investigación científica, xestión territorial e desenvolvemento sostible.
dc.description.abstractThe management of a UNESCO Global Geopark (UGGp) requires a vast wealth of miscellaneous scientific knowledge that can be successfully organised using a Geographical Information System (GIS). This paper presents a pragmatic GIS database to assist in the suitable governance of the Courel Mountains UGGp (2017) in Northwest Spain. The database is structured in 66 coverages compiled from public sources and previous works or produced through traditional mapping (combining field-work and photointerpretation) and GIS tools. The acquired data was later homogenised and validated by a multidisciplinary team and archived in independent coverages. Forty thematic maps illustrate the broad range of cartographic information included in the GIS database. Among them, 25 basic maps provide an overview of the UGGp and 15 new maps focus on crosscutting and technical issues. All maps illustrate the huge potential of GIS to create new resources combining coverages and adapting the legend according to their purpose and audience. The database facilitates the suitable publishing of consist- ent outputs (e.g., brochures, books, panels, webpages, web serves), as well as the elaboration of technical data to assist the park management. The database furnishes information on the design of education actions, touristic routes, activities and Geopark facilities. The GIS database is also a supportive tool for scientific research and provides the necessary knowledge to conduct geoconservation actions based on land use, geological hazards and the occurrence of natural and cultural heritages. Altogether, the GIS database constitutes a powerful instrument for policy-making, facilitating the identification and evaluation of alternative strategy plans.
dc.description.peerreviewedSI
dc.description.sponsorshipFunding for open access charge: Universidad de Granada / CBUA. The work was funded by the Courel Mountains UGGp.
dc.description.sponsorshipThis work was developed in the framework of the Scientific Program of the Courel Mountains UGGp with the coop- eration of tourism agents (A.M. Arza and A. López), roofing slate quarries (Pizarras de Villarbacú, Pizarras de Quiroga) and local peo- ple (M. Reinosa, G. Díaz, O. Álvarez). We are deeply grateful to J.R. Martínez Catalán (Universidad de Salamanca), A. Pérez-Alberti and J. Guitián (both from Universidade de Santiago de Compostela), J.R. Gutiérrez-Marco (ICOG, Universidad Complutense de Madrid/CSIC), J. Vegas (IGME-CSIC), L. González-Menéndez (IGME-CSIC), J.M. García Queijeiro (Universidade de Vigo), L. Santos and A. Grandal- D’Anglade (both from Universidade da Coruña) for their assistance supplying information involved in the database. We thank also E. de Boer for proofreading the article. DB is grant holder of Plan Andaluz de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación 2021, funded by Junta de Andalucía.
dc.identifier.citationBallesteros, D., Caldevilla, P., Vila, R. et al. A GIS-supported Multidisciplinary Database for the Management of UNESCO Global Geoparks: the Courel Mountains Geopark (Spain). Geoheritage 14, 41 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-022-00654-3
dc.identifier.doi10.1007/s12371-022-00654-3
dc.identifier.issn1867-2477
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10347/45077
dc.issue.number41
dc.journal.titleGeoheritage
dc.language.isoeng
dc.page.final34
dc.page.initial1
dc.publisherSpringer
dc.relation.publisherversionhttps://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-022-00654-3
dc.rightsThis article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 Internationalen
dc.rights.accessRightsopen access
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectCultural heritage
dc.subjectGeoheritage
dc.subjectCourel mountains UGGp
dc.subjectGIS
dc.subjectManagement
dc.subjectNatural heritage
dc.subject.classification54 Geografía
dc.subject.classification33 Ciencias tecnológicas
dc.subject.classification2506 Geología
dc.titleA GIS‑supported Multidisciplinary Database for the Management of UNESCO Global Geoparks: the Courel Mountains Geopark (Spain)
dc.typejournal article
dc.type.hasVersionVoR
dc.volume.number14
dspace.entity.typePublication
relation.isAuthorOfPublicationf741524b-b3c1-4f72-959a-85c66291fde4
relation.isAuthorOfPublicationab46ce05-f7c7-4a4e-b27c-ff2c7711cd84
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscoveryf741524b-b3c1-4f72-959a-85c66291fde4

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