IGCP projects
The programme operates by providing seed funding grants donated by UNESCO, IUGS, and extra-budgetary sources. IGCP projects primarily deal with geosciences on global issues related to five themes: Earth resources, Global change, Geohazards, Hydrogeology, and Geodynamics.
Each project has an average lifespan of five years and its progress is assessed annually through a rigorous peer-review process conducted by the IGCP Council following the evaluation reports from members of the Scientific Board during the first half of February.
IGCP projects bring together thousands of Earth scientists from around the world and allows them to benefit from the cooperative spirit generated under the umbrella of UNESCO, with the support of , the from the Republic of Korea and the National Commission of the People's Republic of China for UNESCO.
See here for details of the current call for new IGCP projects.
Earth resources
sustaining our society
Knowledge on natural resources - including minerals, hydrocarbons, geothermal energy, and water - and their management is at the frontline of the struggle for more sustainable and equitable development. The environmentally responsible exploitation of these resources is a challenge for geoscience research. The progress of technological development is equally bound to this premise.
- IGCP 636 - Geothermal resources for energy transition
- IGCP 675 - Sandstone-Type Uranium Deposits
- IGCP 696 - Impacts from Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in the Amazon
- IGCP 722 - Development Minerals workshop in the Pacific
- IGCP 765 - Capacity building networks and improved methodologies for increased interoperability mapping and monitoring carbon stocks
- IGCP 767 - Environmental dynamics of western Rwanda (E-DOOR)
- IGCP 769 - Centre for master's training in energy transition
- IGCP 771: GECO: Geoscience Ecosystem
- IGCP 775: Latin American Metallogeny Course
Global change and the evolution of life
evidence from the geological record
Changes in the Earth's climate and of life on Earth are preserved in the geologic record. Ice and dust records, terrestrial and ocean sediments, and sequences of fossil plant and animal assemblages all tell the story of our Planet which holds important lessons about present-day environmental challenges and the ways to mitigate and manage environmental damage.
- IGCP 673 - The End of A Supereon - Winners and Losers at the Precambrian-Phanerozoic Transition
- IGCP 679 - Cretaceous Earth Dynamics and Climate in Asia
- IGCP 700 - Carbonate Build-Ups In South East Asia
- IGCP 704 - Carbon in Peat on Earth through Time: tropical peatland processes and ecosystem services
- IGCP 732 - LANGUAGE of the Anthropocene
- IGCP 735 - Rocks and the Rise of Ordovician Life (Rocks n' ROL)
- IGCP 739 - The Mesozoic Paleogene Hypertermal Events
Geohazards
mitigating risks
Geohazards include earthquakes, volcanic activity, landslides, tsunamis, floods, meteorite impacts and the health hazards of geologic materials, and can range from local events such as a rock slide or coastal erosion to events that threaten humankind such as a supervolcano or meteorite impact. Earth scientists undertake research to better understand these hazards and contribute to risk management policies related to social and technical issues associated with geohazards as well as disaster mitigation.
- IGCP 669 - Identification of seismogenic faults in populated areas of Latin America and its incorporation into seismic hazard assessment
- IGCP 672 - Himalayan glaciers: assessing risks to local communities from debris cover and lake changes using new satellite data
- IGCP 692 - Geoheritage for Geohazard Resilience
- IGCP 705 - Building Global Capacity for the Observation of Volcanic and Atmospheric Change
- IGCP 724 - Fluid geochemistry and earthquake forecasting
- IGCP 725 - Forecasting coastal change
- IGCP 740 - West Makran Paleo-tsunami Investigation
Hydrogeology
geoscience of the water cycle
Life on Earth depends on water, and its sustainable use is crucial for continued human activities. Earth’s water cycle involves studying, understanding, and managing groundwater systems, hydrogeology, as well as sources, contamination and vulnerability of water systems.
Geodynamics
control our environment
Our habitable environment at the Earth's surface is linked and controlled by processes occurring deep within the Earth. Earth scientists use, inter alia, geophysical techniques to study deep Earth processes ranging from changes in the Earth's magnetic field to plate tectonics to understand better the Earth as a dynamic planet. Those processes are also relevant to natural resource exploration, distribution and management of groundwater resources and the study and mitigation of natural hazards such as earthquakes.
Geoheritage for sustainable development
Special theme - 2020
UNESCO’s mandate acknowledges the research on geological heritage as an important instrument for the holistic approach to sustainable development of UNESCO Member States. The call for proposals under the Geoheritage for Sustainable Development Special Topic will support projects focusing on the protection of geological formations which are essential to:
- keeping the memory of the evolution of the earth;
- learning from evolving processes to solve emerging problems and
- the success of a future sustainable development of local communities, in particular in terms of resource management, renewable energies, energy efficiency, farming, land use and peatland management.
The call for Geoheritage for Sustainable Development will provide seed funding to projects applying best practices and to projects contributing to the strengthening and empowering of local communities to ensure that the geological importance of an area can be preserved and promoted for science, education and culture.
- IGCP 714 - 3GEO – Geoclimbing & Geotrekking in Geoparks
- IGCP 726 - GEOfood for sustainable development in UNESCO Global Geoparks
- IGCP 727 - Geological heritage - sustainable management of geological hazards and water resources in transboundary region of Kyrgyzstan
- IGCP 751 - 4GEON: Connecting geoparks’ local communities through Earth Heritage Education in four continents
- IGCP 772 - Strengthening research, climate resilience and community engagement in Geoparks
How to apply
The International Geoscience Programme (IGCP) currently supports 33 projects, each assessed through a peer-review process with a lifespan of up to five years.
IGCP projects must focus on high-quality scientific research that is of international importance and societal relevance. They should demonstrate interdisciplinary cooperation and constitute international participation, including scientists in developing countries.
In line with UNESCO and IUGS priorities, the IGCP is shifting its approach to funding larger-scale projects by region, starting with Africa. These priorities emphasise expanding geoscience research, capacity-building and knowledge-sharing across the continent.
Successful projects may receive up to USD 50,000 for an initial one-year period, with the possibility of renewal for up to four years. Continued funding beyond year one will be determined annually by the IGCP Council, based on satisfactory progress and fund availability.
Additional resources are usually required to fully implement project research goals, and scientists are strongly encouraged to secure external funding.
Call for IGCP Expressions of Interest – open. See more information here.
Selection of concluded projects
Earth Resources
- IGCP 637 - Heritage Stones: a step towards to widen up the recognition of stones used in the building of heritage in emerging countries
- IGCP 770 - Researching Social Theories, Resources, and Environment - ReSToRE 3
- IGCP 665 - Sustainable use of black soil critical zone
- IGCP 685 - Geology for Sustainable Development
- IGCP 697- Building New Tools for Data Sharing and Re-use through a Transnational Investigation of the Socioeconomic Impacts of Protected Areas
- IGCP 741 - Metallogenic prediction, sustainable development and integrated utilization of mineral resources in the Tethys metallogenic domain
- IGCP 766 - Fostering Researchers in the Geosciences (FoRGe)
- IGCP 768 - Short Course on African Metallogeny
Geohazards
- IGCP 683 - Pre-Atlantic geological connections among northwest Africa, Iberia and eastern North America: Implications for continental configurations and economic resources
- IGCP 716 - Asian Coastal Resilience Network (ACoRN)
Hydrogeology
- IGCP 707 - Origin, Distribution, and Biogeochemistry of Arsenic in the Altiplano-Puna plateau of South America
- IGCP 663 - Impact, Mechanism, Monitoring of Land Subsidence in Coastal cities
- IGCP 684 - The Water-Energy-Food and Groundwater Sustainability Nexus (WEF-GW Nexus)
Geodynamics
Geoheritage