GeoSciEd IX 2022​

As of the winter of 2021, the fury of the new coronavirus is still raging around the world, and there is no prospect of the entry restrictions to Japan being lifted. Even if the entry restrictions for foreigners are lifted in the summer of 2022, it is unclear how many days the participants will be required to stay at a location designated by the quarantine station and to refrain from using public transportation and so on. 

Therefore, recalling the theme of the 9th GeoSciEd conference, "Earth Science Education for Sustainability”, we would like to challenge two hybrids for the 9th GeoSciEd in 2022.

The first is a hybrid of face-to-face meetings at the venue, “Kunibiki Messe” for as many participants as possible, and online virtual conferences for the participants who cannot come to Japan. Because of the time difference, it is difficult for participants from all over the world to gather online at the same time. By limiting the time of the conference as “Core time” to 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Japan time (JST), it will be possible to participate in the morning in Europe, in the afternoon in Southeast Asia and India, and in the early morning in North and South America. The 9th GeoSciEd will be a hybrid face-to-face/online conference.

The other is a hybrid of an international conference (GeoSciEd9) and a national conference (Japan Society of Earth Science Education: JSESE). The 9th GeoSciEd held at nighttime will spare a free time in the day. Therefore, we are planning to use this daytime to hold the 76th annual meetings of the Japanese Society of Earth Education. 

Depending on the global spread of the Covid-19 in the summer of 2022 and the entry restrictions in Japan, we would like to invite as many participants from overseas to come to Shimane as possible, if the situation permits. We are planning to ask participants from overseas not only to attend part of JSESE meetings at noon, but also to participate in the junior poster presentation by Japanese high school students.

By combining the two hybrids, the conference will be held over a long period of time, from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. We hope that many people involved in geoscience education and students will participate, and we look forward to seeing all of you here at Matsue in Japan after the cessation of the Covid-19 pandemic.