The various teams of scientists from the consortium of project GEOPARK have contributed significantly to a better knowledge of the natural and cultural heritage of the Zat Valley.
In close collaboration with Moroccan experts in natural sciences and tourism, the GEOPARK project has designed a plan for valorization of geodiversity and selected 13 geosites based on scientific, didactic and touristic interests.
Through the case of Zat Valley (Morroco), the GEOPARK project has developed an innovative methodology of geopark adapted for developing countries. This method combines integrated heritage inventory on geo-bio-cultural diversity and empowerment of local community.
Based on the principle in application files of the UNESCO Global Geopark (UGG), it is essential to identify distinctive elements from other comparable geoparks. We first determined the characteristics of the study area in relation to the country's geopark alone (M'Goun's UGG) and other two aspiring geoparks (Doukkala-Abda and Tazenakht). We have taken into account, in selecting geological sites of interest to tourists, the results of sediment analyses of the most frequented areas in order to detect the presence of signs of environmental contamination likely to reveal the fragility of these sites.
It is fundamental for a territorial development project such as a geopark to highlight the result of the constant interactions between biophysical and socio-economic elements. Therefore, ecologists and biologists of our team have adapted a methodology based on the interpretation of landscapes from the integrative perspective of socio-ecological systems. This methodology aims to improve the understanding and enhancement of landscapes in a systematic and interdisciplinary perspective, it can then be used for environmental education and scientific communication
Finally, the cultural heritage has been studied and surveyed for their interlinks with socio-economic development, with special focus on women’s role in the heritage process.
Results of the heritage inventory were then exploited though the construction of GIS mapping of Zat valley, which would ensure the accessibility and sustainability of data for a multidisciplinary analysis of the territory. In the long term, local stakeholders would be able to continue to update the data of GIS maps at different spatial and temporal scales in order to monitor future territorial changes.
The GEOPARK project also engaged in sharing the findings of heritage inventory with local societies through creating a web-based virtual museum and an itinerary exhibition. The virtual museum enables users to discover local heritages in an enriched interactive map between different themes. The exhibition “Zat Valley: between heritage conservation and development” composed of 15 panels has been delivered to a local youth association with a brief training. These are not merely dissemination materials of the project, but are designed to encourage and engage local societies to debate and to rethink the future change of Zat valley, thus serve as empowering tools for local communities.
Geopark-related capacity building in the field of higher education is another key objective of our project. During four years, we have organized 3 Autumn/Winter schools for master students, and overall about 18 PhD students from 9 countries (Morocco, Gabon, Togo, Colombia, Equator, Brazil, China, France and Spain) have participated in the four sessions of Doctoriales organized by the GEOPARK project. In order to provide further distance learning opportunities for previous students and even larger publics, we have launched an educational website (
http://geopark.mnhn.fr(s’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre)) with over one hundred video learning materials.
