Top
About Us

Irish and UK UNESCO Global Geoparks

Geoparks are areas of exceptional geological significance that promote awareness of the earth’s geological heritage. They foster respect for the environment and for the integrity of natural landscapes.

Irelands UNESCO Global Geoparks

Ireland has three Geoparks: The Cuilcagh Lakelands UNSESCO Global Geopark, The Copper Coast UNESCO Global Geopark, and the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark.

Cuilcagh Lakelands UNESCO Global Geopark

Tucked away in the northwest corner of the island of Ireland, straddling the border between counties Fermanagh and Cavan, the first Transnational Geopark in the world allows visitors to appreciate the best of what this unspoilt border region has to offer. The Geopark includes a wide variety of sites of interest in a swathe of countryside extending from the northern shores of Lower Lough Erne in County Fermanagh to the southern shores of Lough Oughter in County Cavan. Whether you’re searching for a tranquil spot to do some big thinking, or maybe you’re in search of an exciting adventure, exploring mountains and caves, Cuilcagh Lakelands Geopark has something for everyone.

https://cuilcaghlakelands.org

Cuilcagh Lakelands Landscape photograph

Copper Coast UNESCO Global Geopark

The Copper Coast Geopark is in Co. Waterford, Ireland and is an outdoor museum of geological records; it stretches along the coast from Kilfarassy Beach, near Fenor in the east to Ballyvoile Beach near Stradbally to the west. Volcanoes, oceans, deserts and ice sheets all combined to create the rocks which provide the physical foundation of the natural and cultural landscapes of the area. Follow the self-guided “Copper Coast” trail and walking cards available from the The Copper Coast Geopark Centre in Bunmahon.

https://coppercoastgeopark.com/

Copper Coast landscape photograph

Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark

The Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark supports people and organisations to work together to ensure a cared-for landscape, a better understood heritage, more sustainable tourism, a vibrant community and strengthened livelihoods.

The Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark is in Co. Clare in the West of Ireland. It covers an area of 530 square kms. Its boundary is marked to the West and North by the Atlantic coast, then runs South along the Clare county border to the village of Tubber and Westwards by the villages of Corofin, Kilfenora, Lisdoonvarna on to the Cliffs of Moher.

https://www.burrengeopark.ie/

The burren and Cliffs of Moher Cliffs landscape photograph

The UKs UNESCO Global Geoparks

The UK has ten UNESCO Global Geoparks: Arran UNESCO Global Geopark, Black Country UNESCO Global Geopark, English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark, Fforest Fawr UNESCO Global Geopark, GeoMôn UNESCO Global Geopark, North Pennines UNESCO Global Geopark, North West Highlands UNESCO Global Geopark, Shetland UNESCO Global Geopark and Mourne Gullion Strangford UNESCo Global Geopark. Cuilcagh Lakelands UNESCO Global Geopark is also a UK UNESCO Global Geopark and covered above.

The UK National Commission for UNESCO works in partnership with all the UK Geoparks, supporting their efforts in conservation, education, and sustainable development as part of the global network of UNESCO-designated sites.

Arran UNESCO Global Geopark

Located on the Isle of Arran, Arran Geopark is a place of globally significant geological heritage, showcasing nearly 500 million years of Earth’s history. The island’s diverse rock formations tell a story of shifting continents, volcanic activity, and ancient environments, from deep oceans to desert landscapes. This unique geodiversity has shaped Arran’s dramatic scenery, from rugged mountains to rolling coastlines, and has long been a source of scientific discovery.

The Geopark is home to some of Scotland’s most remarkable geological features, including the Highland Boundary Fault, which divides the island into two distinct geological regions, and the iconic Hutton’s Unconformity, where pioneering geologist James Hutton found evidence to support his groundbreaking theories on deep time and Earth’s processes. Fossils, lava flows, and glacial landscapes further reveal the island’s dynamic past.

Beyond geology, Arran Geopark connects Earth heritage with biodiversity, cultural traditions, and outdoor adventure. The landscapes have supported human communities for thousands of years, reflected in the island’s archaeology, folklore, and rich natural habitats. Today, the Geopark promotes conservation, education, and sustainable tourism, offering guided walks, interpretive trails, and interactive experiences that bring Arran’s ancient past to life.

The story of Arran is one of transformation—shaped by fire, ice, and time—and continues to inspire geologists, locals, and visitors alike.

https://www.arran-geopark.org.uk

Black Country UNESCO Global Geopark

Located between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, the Black Country is a place of internationally important geological heritage and outstanding industrial heritage intimately related to it. The area’s geology spans 428 million years and well known for its exceptional fossils. The area was particularly rich in easily accessible industrial minerals (coal, ironstone fireclay, and limestone) sealing its stature as a place discovery and invention at the centre of the Industrial Revolution.

The rocks of the Black Country tell the story of vast changes in the landscape and environment over enormous periods of geological time. This geopark connects the geology under our feet with biodiversity, cultural, and industrial heritage on the landscape above. The area contains Europe’s thickest coal seam (12 metres), interbedded with multiple other important layers of economic minerals.

Rock layers contain exceptionally preserved fossil reef structures in-life-position, including the world’s best preserved fossil spider. These have deep cultural links with communities; the trilobite species Calymene found here (known locally as the ‘Dudley Bug’) was adopted as the mascot of the limestone miners and is presented at the centre of the town of Dudley’s coat-of-arms.

The geodiversity of the area created varied landscapes and habitats providing huge quantities of natural resources that gave birth to the world’s first large industrial region and one of the most important cradles of human invention & innovation. Key inventions and works were developed here, led by the likes of Abraham Darby (the ‘Father of the Industrial Revolution’) and Sir Roderick Murchison (founder of the Silurian Period of geological time).

It was here that the creation of the world’s first powerful steam engine (the Newcomen engine) took place; revolutionising mining practice. To facilitate industry, the Black Country developed an incredible density of man-made waterways including the world’s oldest navigable canal tunnel. The activities of the industrial past are expressed through the landscape, arts, dialect and traditions of local communities; echoes of the proud industrial centuries that shaped this land and influenced the knowledge and development of the entire world.

https://blackcountrygeopark.dudley.gov.uk/bcg/

English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark

Including the three towns of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham, the naturally inspiring English Riviera is one of Earth’s extraordinary places, situated on the beautiful coast of South Devon. The area’s remarkable geology is exposed along 22 miles of intricate coastline which provides a real mix of quiet wildlife-rich secluded coves, dramatic cliffs and headlands to family friendly beaches, bustling seafront proms and protected harbours. An intriguing place of discovery where past meets present.

At first glance, the popular seaside resort of the English Riviera might seem an unlikely place to be recognised by UNESCO but delve just a little deeper and you’ll find the area’s unique and internationally significant geology has influenced its stunning landscape and biodiversity leading to one of the highest concentrations of geological, land and marine based designated sites in the UK.

With a wealth of recognised historical and cultural sites too, the geology has even shaped the area’s incredible human history. From providing shelter to the earliest prehistoric people and animals in Kents Cavern, to creating ideal conditions for the monks to thrive at Torre Abbey, it protected Nelson’s fleet out in the bay from the prevailing winds and of course enabled the development of Brixham as a fishing port, still thriving today.

A place that has influenced geologists, archaeologists, artists and writers, the Geopark is packed full of stories to share from 400-million-year-old fossils and a 41,000-year-old human jawbone to the life of Agatha Christie. From exhilarating coasteering to tranquil guided walks and outdoor yoga, the Geopark’s experienced partners provide a range of unique and fun ways to connect with this extraordinary place.

http://www.englishrivierageopark.org.uk/

English Riviera landscape photograph

Fforest Fawr UNESCO Global Geopark

Fforest Fawr Geopark is situated in the western half of the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) National Park and spans the transition between rural and agricultural mid Wales and the industrial valleys of south Wales. The geopark’s diverse landscapes, including heathland, valleys, forests, lakes, waterfalls, and caves, are appreciated for their openness and wilderness appeal. The geology tells the story of ancient climate change, mountain building and sea level changes.
Fforest Fawr Geopark is characterised by the strong association between its geology, nature, and Wales’s cultural and industrial heritage. The modern landscape is the product of the interaction between human activity and a topography sculpted by glaciers during the last Ice Age.

The nature of soils derived from the underlying 470 million years sequence of marine and terrestrial strata is reflected in the exceptional nature of the geopark’s flora and fauna.

Karstification of the Carboniferous Limestone has given rise to some of the UK’s longest and deepest cave systems and extensive doline fields. Between 28,000 and 11,700 years ago, sculpting of the area by ice created the landscape in which upland and lowland environments now reflect the histories of human activity. The rich culture of the area’s early inhabitants comes to life in myths and legends associated with features in the landscape. Culhwch ac Olwen or the Twrch Trwyth, the first record of an Arthurian Romance, is associated with the River Twrch. Stone circles, hillforts, Roman sites, medieval castles, and ancient churches are the rich legacy of ancient lives.

Weathered and overgrown abandoned quarries, brickworks, limekilns, and elements of a transport system are the relicts of the exploitation of the area’s geology in an industrial age. They are now an integral part of the Geopark’s beautiful and dramatic landscape.

https://www.fforestfawrgeopark.org.uk/

Fforest Fawr landscape photograpgh

GeoMôn UNESCO Global Geopark

GeoMôn is a UNESCO Global Geopark consisting of the Isle of Anglesey. It is a region of exceptional geological significance and geoheritage with 1.8 billion years of Earth history, the oldest fossils in England and Wales, and more than 100 rock types from almost every Geological Period. The geodiversity of the Geopark provides a readily accessible commentary on climate and environmental change through geological time, and socio-economic developments that have defined the history of the island.
Anglesey, located on the north-west tip of Wales, is an island of spectacular geology. The great variety of rocks gives rise to a wide range of landforms and seascapes with a spectacular coastline including broad sandy beaches, small rocky coves, and stunning rocky cliffs.

The rocks include volcanic deposits formed at the boundaries of tectonic plates, metamorphic rocks from subduction zones, and widespread deposits from the last Ice Age.

The human landscape is defined by building stones influencing architecture and by soils determining farming and forestry. There is a variety of quarries and mines (including a copper mine that was once the biggest in the world), ancient monuments and settlements. The power in the rocks that make the landscape, sculpt both the culture and language of the people that live on this extraordinary island.

https://www.geomon.co.uk/

GeoMon landscape photograpgh

North Pennines UNESCO Global Geopark

A National Landscape (formerly ‘Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’) as well as a UNESCO Global Geopark, the North Pennines covers almost 2,000km2 of some of England’s remotest countryside. The National Landscape and UNESCO Global Geopark designations are overseen by a dedicated team of 60 people, with a mission to recover nature and engage people more deeply with their nature and heritage.
The North Pennines is a beautiful upland area in the north of England, with peatlands, hay meadows and tumbling rivers, star-filled dark night skies, and of course a world class geological & mining heritage. In spring and summer, the highlights are the breeding wading birds, hay meadow flowers and arctic-alpine plants. In autumn the night sky is the star, whilst the outstanding geo-heritage is there to enjoy all year round.

There are thousands of kilometres of footpaths and bridleways to explore in the North Pennines, taking visitors to fantastic waterfalls such as Ashgill Force and High Force (England’s biggest waterfall), nature reserves including the RSPB’s flagship Geltsdale reserve, and historic sites such as Killhope Lead Mining Museum and Nenthead Mines.

Painted by JMW Turner, written about by WH Auden and Charles Dickens, this is the wild heart of the north of England.

https://www.northpennines.org.uk/unesco-global-geopark/

North Pennines foothills landscape photograph

North West Highlands UNESCO Global Geopark

Located in the most north-westerly part of mainland Scotland, the North West Highlands Global Geopark encompasses an area of approximately 2,000sq km. And being home to just over 2,000 people, is one of the most sparsely populated areas in Europe. Its geology contains the oldest rocks in the UK, the Lewisian Gneiss at over three billion years old, underpinning the awe-inspiring sandstone mountains and fertile limestone landscapes.
The foundations of the North West Highlands are close to the surface across much of the area, with ancient land exposed within cliffs, mountains and the low-lying “Cnoc and Lochan” landscape, interspersed with lochs and blanket bog.

This exposure of the rocks is one reason that makes this area perfect for training the next generation of earth scientists and anyone wishing to learn about our planet. Indeed, the eastern boundary of the Geopark, the Moine Thrust fault, is a place that significantly contributed to the understanding of how the world’s great mountain ranges were formed.

But alongside the rocks are the vast spectacular views, habitats of national significance and the crofting way of life, all combining to create this unique and special place. Hhabitats such as woodland remnants (some at their most northerly limit in the British Isles) and the sparsely populated but very connected and resilient communities, give the impression of a harder way of life for its inhabitants. In some ways it is, but this is balanced with the close connection to the natural environment, through living with and alongside places like the white sandy beaches and dramatic coastlines.

There are also the visible remains of the Iron Age, together with evidence of the Vikings in some of the placenames, alongside the Gaelic language, both etched onto the ancient and modern maps.

https://www.nwhgeopark.com/

North west Highlands landscape photograph

Shetland UNESCO Global Geopark

Located at the northern tip of Scotland, Geopark Shetland tells a geological story that spans almost three billion years. The islands feature ancient volcanic rocks, rugged cliffs, sweeping beaches, and landscapes shaped by glaciers and tectonic forces. In turn, Shetland’s unique geology supports rare plants, diverse wildlife, and a rich variety of archaeological sites, linking Earth’s deep past with Shetland’s cultural heritage.
Geopark Shetland is a cluster of islands where nearly three billion years of Earth’s history can be explored across diverse landscapes of ancient rocks, dramatic cliffs, and sweeping coastlines. This geological heritage includes remnants of a former ocean floor, ancient volcanic formations, and landscapes sculpted by glaciers, making Shetland a unique record of tectonic and glacial processes.

The islands’ rich habitats, from heathlands and moorlands to coastal cliffs and peat bogs, support diverse wildlife, including seabirds, otters, and seals, as well as rare and endemic plant species.

The Geopark also holds cultural significance, with archaeological sites dating back thousands of years, reflecting the resilience of communities shaped by the islands’ unique environment. Prehistoric settlements, Viking ruins, and historic fishing and crofting landscapes highlight the deep connection between Shetlanders and the land.

Today, Geopark Shetland offers visitors a chance to explore trails, visitor centres, and tours that reveal Shetland’s unique natural and cultural heritage. Its combination of striking landscapes, diverse habitats, and rich history makes it a truly special place, fostering an appreciation for both natural wonders and the islanders who have adapted to this remote, beautiful environment for centuries.

https://www.shetlandamenity.org/geopark-shetland

Shetland Landscape photograph