Scientific research plays an important role in safeguarding protected areas. However, there are barriers to conducting science and uncertainties regarding how this knowledge might locally guide conservation actions. Therefore, our study aimed at analyzing how research is managed in 22 state parks managed by the Forestry Foundation in São Paulo, Southeast Brazil, and verifying whether park age, available infrastructure, number of trails, and staff were crucial for fostering scientific research. Using official information on websites, a survey and a database provided by the state environmental agency, we tested the relationship between these variables by performing multivariate regression analyzes. We also systematically reviewed management plans of each state park to identify research priorities. Parks with better physical and organizational resources and more efficient management, attracted more research projects. Our results showed that only a third of the research priorities were met, indicating a deficit in knowledge needed for management. The most important variables identified for scientific research in Brazilian parks could serve as targets for other protected areas worldwide (e.g., the number of trails to access study sites).

Glacial and periglacial environments in alpine regions are increasingly threatened by anthropogenic activities and climate change, yet the supraglacial-periglacial redistribution of trace elements and role of nature reserves in these fragile ecosystems remains understudied. This research evaluates contamination levels in cryoconites and soils of two adjacent gorges in the Central Caucasus: the strictly protected Tsey Gorge and the tourism-intensive Skazka Gorge. Trace elements (Cu, Zn, Ni, Pb, Cd), basic physicochemical properties and pollution indices were analyzed. Zn was the most abundant element in both gorges (maximum of 79.00 mg·kg⁻¹), attributed to natural geological background and legacy Pb-Zn mining. Conversely, Cu (max. 23.30 mg·kg⁻¹) and Ni (maximum of 34.15 mg·kg⁻¹) contamination in Skazka Gorge correlated with tourism infrastructure and related processes. Cryoconites acted as transient reservoirs, with meltwater facilitating the downstream transfer of trace elements to soils, evidenced by higher contamination in periglacial zone. Pollution indices classified Tsey as “unpolluted” and Skazka as “slightly polluted,” with moderate ecological risks in soils. The study demonstrates that protected areas and promotion of “eco-tourism” effectively reduced tourism-driven contamination, while geogenic and mining influences continue to affect the environmental quality of the studied alpine zone.

The popularity of geotourism is on the rise, and participatory approach projects are becoming increasingly common within the UNESCO Global Geoparks network. Nevertheless, geoparks may occasionally fail in the purpose of connecting with communities, and the application of community participation may be confusing. This paper, through a qualitative analysis, explores the integration of participatory tools and vernacular knowledge in managing geotourism in the Northern French Alps, focusing on their potential to enhance geotrails and interpretation centers. While these practices can strengthen community engagement and project success, they are still underutilized in geotourism management. The data were collected through a combination of methods, including observation of interpretation panels, supplementary materials, and technologies, as well as through direct observation and seven expert interviews. The findings indicate that geotrails and interpretive centers are considered essential for popularizing geology, diversifying tourism, and achieving regional sustainable development. Furthermore, the importance of participatory tools and popular knowledge for interpreted environments and the achievement of territorial sustainable development is emphasized. However, the qualitative data analysis suggests that there is an underemphasis on participatory tools and an inadequate integration of vernacular knowledge in the study areas, which raises questions about the long-term efficacy of these approaches with absolute certainty. This highlights the need for standardized models to guide participatory approaches and evaluate their effectiveness, as well as the integration of vernacular knowledge into geotrails. Additionally, recognizing the potential value of these elements, it is essential to increase local community involvement in the design of geotrails and to better incorporate vernacular knowledge into the narrative.

Karst systems are increasingly recognized as valuable geoheritage sites. Although Africa hosts numerous karst landscapes, few countries maintain comprehensive inventories. Here, we investigated the karstic cavities within the Schisto-Calcaire Group in the Republic of Congo and assessed their geoheritage potential. We identified 169 karstic cavities by compiling data from publications, speleological reports, and field expeditions mainly in the Bangou Forest, the Madingou and Loudima valley regions. The inventory shows that 42 cavities have archaeological or anthropological significance. The Madingou region was selected as a focal point for fieldwork due to its high concentration of karstic cavities. This led to the discovery of 24 new cavities and revealed advanced karst development, including cone karst morphologies (fengcong, fenglin), dolines, uvalas, and karst springs. These cavities host diverse speleothems, cave-dwelling fauna, and ceramic remains. The geomorphological features result from interactions between lithological variability, tectonic structures, and surface processes. The geoheritage potential was assessed using a six-criteria classification framework encompassing geomorphology, hydrology, endokarst, lithology-palaeontology, tectonics-structural, and archaeology. The results underscore the high scientific, touristic, and educational value of the Madingou karst, highlighting the need for geoconservation strategies and sustainable tourism development. This study marks the first implementation of a systematic inventory approach toward geoheritage promotion in a Congolese karstic region and in Central Africa. This approach offers a replicable model for other areas. Linking geoheritage to sustainable land management contributes to SDG 11.4 on safeguarding cultural and natural heritage, as well as SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 13 (Climate Action), and SDG 15 (Life on Land).

The Apennine mountain areas host a significant variability of landscapes and related high geomorphodiversity. Thanks to their notable natural heritage and high degree of biodiversity, many of these areas host natural protected areas. However, although the natural values of protected areas are undoubtedly connected to their geological-geomorphological features, the fruition of the geomorphological heritage is still very limited. The present study illustrates the possible contribution of geomorphosites and geomorphodiversity sites to sustain the development of geotourism in protected areas. To this aim, two mountain areas of the Molise region (Southern Italy) were selected, falling in the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park and in the recently established Matese National Park, respectively. The rich geomorphological heritage of these areas was analyzed and archived in a GIS database. It includes 29 geomorphosites and 5 geomorphodiversity sites referring to the categories structural/tectonic, karst, glacial, fluvial, and complex sites. Among these sites, we selected 15 geomorphosites and 4 geodiversity sites, which are retained particularly suitable for geotourism purposes and best representing the distinguished geomorphological heritage and diversity in both areas. Site selection was based on literature review and relative precedent geosite evaluations through quali-quantitative procedures, integrated with field surveys and territorial GIS analyses. The selected sites, thanks to their characteristics, can be useful tools and destinations to sustain the development of geotourism activities and increase sustainable tourism within the two park areas.

Earlier studies have highlighted the significance of the socio-economic aspects of ecosystem services (ES) and their critical role in planning and decision-making processes. However, more research is required to comprehend the variations in people's perceptions of ES and land management preferences (LMP) in various contexts. This study aims to examine the spatial distribution of ES and LMP to reveal possible trade-offs and synergies among them, particularly in relation to the Adina Deer Park (ADP) (forest) and surrounding 1-km buffer. A paper-based participatory geographic information system (PGIS) method was used to collect empirical data on ES and LMP. Results show that hotspots for regulating ecosystem services (RES) are strongly associated with conservation preferences (CP) (r = 0.68), and weak (r = 0.22) association with cultural ecosystem services (CES). Additionally, hotspots for CES and CP show a strong association (r = 0.72). Hotspots of LMP have a weak association with hotspots of provisioning ecosystem services (PES) (r = 0.36) but no association with hotspots of CP and CES (r = 0.10 and r = 0.11, respectively). Most hotspots for RES and CES (78.64% and 82.67%, respectively) are located within the forest area (FA), while 89.02% of the PES hotspot is located in the non-forest area (NFA). Additionally, 87.56% of CES and 82.87% of RES are provided by the FA (10.57% of the total area), suggesting that the FA provides a broad range of resources supporting local livelihoods and well-being. The results highlighted the relevance of integrating local values of ES and LMP in conservation planning, especially in ecologically sensitive locations such as ADP (forest). This approach increases effective, inclusive land use planning that balances development and conservation, contributing directly and indirectly toward Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and ecological resilience.

The tourism industry, along with its various sub-sectors, offers numerous economic, social, and cultural benefits to host communities, particularly in rural areas. However, few studies have explored the prediction of geotourism resilience at the Likert scale using machine learning techniques, especially those focusing on feature selection through the 10-fold cross-validation technique. This study aims to predict geotourism resilience using several machine learning algorithms—including artificial neural networks (ANN), Bayes net (BN), logistic regression (LR), naive Bayes (NB), naive Bayes tree (NBTree), and random forest (RF)—in Quri-Qaleh village, Ravansar county, Kermanshah province, Iran. Data were collected from a randomly selected sample of 150 individuals through a structured questionnaire. The most important variables on geotourism resilience were selected based on the average merit of the information gain ratio (AM_IGR) feature selection technique. To evaluate the models' goodness-of-fit and predictive performance, several statistical metrics—including precision, recall, F1-measure, area under the curve (AUC)—as well as the non-parametric Friedman test, were applied. The findings revealed 65.3% of respondents exhibited low to very low resilience, 10.7% moderate resilience, and 24% high to very high resilience. Among the predictive variables, product innovation (PI; AM_IGR = 0.254), government support (GS; AM_IGR = 0.253), increased destination attractiveness (IDA; AM_IGR = 0.213), monthly income (MI; AM_IGR = 0.203) and social capital (SC; AM_IGR = 0.189) emerged as the five most influential variables. Comparative analysis indicated the NB algorithm outperformed other models in predicting geotourism resilience (mean of AUC = 0.826; F1-measure = 0.627; recall = 0.622, and precision = 0.651). This research can assist decision-makers in environmental and rural development in identifying strategies to strengthen the resilience of geotourism.

This study presents the development of a comprehensive karst geoethics assessment model (KGAM) that integrates karst vulnerability, conservation practices, and tourism utilization to promote a geoethical approach to International Best Practice (IBP), ensuring appropriate karst site management. The primary goal is to assess the performance from a geoethical perspective of sustainable management strategies for geologically significant destinations. As a case study, eight karst geosites in Serbia and Montenegro were subject to evaluation using four sets of indicators: karst vulnerability (KV), human activities (HA), conservation efforts (CE), and geoethical tourism performance (GTP). Results reveal a range of vulnerabilities, conservation statuses, and tourism practices across the geosites, highlighting significant challenges, particularly in waste management, biodiversity loss, and geoethical awareness of local communities. Whilst a few geosites demonstrate robust conservation efforts and low human interference, others face high vulnerabilities from tourism and urban activities. The study emphasizes the need for specialised management strategies, educational programs, and geoethical practices to ensure the sustainable management and conservation of karst geosites. Recommendations for targeted interventions, stakeholder involvement, and geoethical tourism promotion are provided to improve the long-term sustainability of these unique landscapes.

The Ediacaran-Paleozoic rocks of the Timaderouine area are exposed in the Jbel Saghro domain, which belongs to the Eastern Anti-Atlas Mountain Belt in Southern Morocco. The region contains geosites with significance in structural geology, mineralogy, sedimentology, paleontology, geomorphology, and important mining potential. This study focuses on the inventory and the quantitative assessment of nine Ediacaran-Ordovician geosites in the west of Tinghir city. The global methodology used for assessment is based on evaluating each geosite's scientific, educational, touristic, and degradation risk values. The results indicate that the scientific value is high (scores are ranging from 330 to 370) for seven geosites and moderate for two geosites (290 and 300 respectively). In terms of educational value, all the geosites exhibit high scores, with a maximum of 340. Moreover, the touristic value is high at two geosites (305 and 310 respectively), while the remaining seven geosites exhibit moderate values. Finally, five geosites have a moderate degradation risk, with a maximum score of 225. The other four geosites are categorized, each scoring 130. The moderate degradation risk values are mainly caused by the small extension of geosites, water and wind erosion, mining activity, and illegal and abusive fossil collection. Based on these findings and the significant value of the assessed geosites in the nearby High Atlas and M'Goun Geopark, it is essential to implement protective measures and conservation strategies for the geosites in the Timaderouine area. This would enhance geotourism attractiveness of the Tinghir territory, part of the Draa-Tafilalet region and support the development of future geoconservation, educational, and tourism strategies. Ultimately, the establishment of a new UNESCO Global Geopark (Saghro Geopark) within the Draa-Tafilalet region could contribute to sustainable development and improve the socioeconomic conditions of the local communities, particularly by expanding geotourism-driven economic opportunities in Tinghir province.