UNESCO experts suggest greater public involvement in Lạng Sơn Geopark preservation

Experts of the UNESCO Global Geopark Network have suggested the northern province of Lạng Sơn to pay special attention to educating local community about the values of the Lạng Sơn Geopark and enhancing local community’s responsibility in preserving the geopark.

Experts of the UNESCO Global Geopark Network have suggested the northern province of Lạng Sơn to pay special attention to educating local community about the values of the Lạng Sơn Geopark and enhancing local community’s responsibility in preserving the geopark.

At a meeting with provincial leaders on July 10, the two UNESCO experts - Kristin Rangnes and Tuncer Demir - said that the province needs to protect and promote values of the geopark in combination with its socio-economic development strategy.

In particular, they underlined the need for the province to exploit the unique local features to develop a geopark model that is different from other geoparks.

Lạng Sơn geopark and its counterparts in the northern region of Việt Nam should support and complement each other to develop together instead of competing with each other, the experts said, citing UNESCO's requirements for potential geoparks to have outstanding geological values and natural landscape that are distinctive from others.

They also asked local authorities to take measures to ensure absolute safety for people and tourists at tourist attractions. A guidebook introducing the outstanding values of each area, relic site, and scenic spot in the geopark is also necessary to help visitors gain understanding about the relic.

Appreciating the experts’ recommendations, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Dương Xuân Huyền said that the province will continue investing and completing the geopark’s infrastructure so that it can meet criteria of an UNESCO global geopark.

Previously, the UNESCO experts made a field trip from July 6 - 9 for on-site assessment of the dossier to seek UNESCO's recognition of Lạng Sơn Geopark as a global one. They visited 26 out of 38 attractions across four tourism routes of the Lang Son Geopark in the districts of Bắc Sơn, Bình Gia, Văn Quan, Hữu Lũng, Chi Lăng, Cao Lộc, Lộc Bình and Lạng Sơn City.

Covering 4,842 sq.km, Lạng Sơn Geopark, established in 2021, is one of the largest of its kind in Việt Nam and boasts a number of unique values.

In terms of geology, geomorphology and landscape, it is home to a rich diversity of palaeobiological fossils dating back as far as 500 million years, many of which indicate this province used to be under the sea in the past. Moreover, this park is endowed with many renowned landscapes such as the low mountain ranges surrounding valleys and villages in Yên Thịnh Commune of Hữu Lũng District, or the caves like Thẩm Khuyên in Bình Gia District that accommodated prehistoric humans.

Regarding cultural values, it houses a number of temples dedicated to the gods in the worship of Mother Goddesses – an intangible cultural heritage of humanity, especially Bắc Lệ Temple, as well as villages of Tày and Nùng ethnic groups with distinctive cultures.