Colombia seeks to create its first UNESCO geopark in the Tusa hill (Cerro Tusa), in the department of Antioquia. The initiative seeks to have the geological heritage and culture surrounding its history recognized worldwide.
Professor Luis Hernan Sanchez Arredondo, a researcher at the Faculty of Mines of the National University of Colombia, is leading this proposal, together with a large team of researchers and communities.
Sanchez Arredondo is convinced that this area in the southwest of the department of Antioquia has what it takes to join the UNESCO Global Geoparks Network. Although the proposal is still in its embryonic phase, if successful, the Southwest of Antioquia would be inserted in a geotourism network that moves almost US$1.3 billion dollars a year.
Researchers seek to create Colombia’s first UNESCO geopark
Professor Sanchez Arredondo and his team of researchers from four Antioquian universities, accompanied by delegations from up to eight municipalities in the area, have spent four years shaping the geological and social studies of the proposed Near Southwest Geopark, which they officially presented two weeks ago.
Broadly speaking, the project initiative proposes Cerro Tusa as the main geosite of international interest, recognized for being the largest natural pyramid in the world, but which, according to the proponents, is much more than that.
Research on the mysteries of Cerro Tusa, which began a century ago, has revealed that this unique pyramid, along with several hills such as Bravo and the cliffs of La Pintada, are volcanic domes—evidence of the volcanic activity that took place in the Cauca River Valley and the western mountain range in Antioquia and Caldas, which ended five million years ago.
These formations, which today are visited by thousands of tourists every year, are domes of rocks formed from dying volcanoes in a chain that was active for only eight million years, according to research by the National University’s School of Mines.
These researchers point out that this is a rare phenomenon, considering that volcanic chains usually remain active for up to 30 million years. In this sense, the project leader explains that Unesco’s priority with geoparks “is to ensure sustainable development in the communities that inhabit them, as well as to find a balance between the preservation of these exceptional sites and the social, cultural and economic revitalization of human groups.”
An exceptional site in Colombia
To date, Colombia does not have any geoparks of this level, despite being among the five countries in the world with the most national parks. Several issues have prevented this, despite the fact that the country has submitted several proposals in the past.
Southwestern Antioquia is not only an exceptional place for its natural formations; project leaders emphasize the importance of the mining past of this territory, which has left a lasting imprint in the form of abandoned villages that once thrived.
The Colombian initiative aims to build a narrative that shows “Colombia and the world” that without the mining that took place in the Southwest, the country as it is known today would have been very different.
One of the examples cited by Professor Sanchez Arredondo, about these hidden stories that are intertwined with mining, is that of businessman Gustavo Toro Quintero. The entrepreneur built his empire by selling fabrics and other products to the miners of the municipality of Titiribi. They would come to his store eager to spend their money on things that would demonstrate their social and economic status.
Years later, Sanchez Arredondo recalls, this businessman set up a small store in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador, which would be the seed of today’s Exito stores — leaders in the supermarket sector in Colombia.
The Colombian proposal includes up to eight municipalities that would include the sites of interest of the future Southwest Geopark. Among them are the ruins of La Ferrería, in the town of Amaga, where the necessary components that facilitated the growth of the coffee industry were produced, such as the enormous threshing machines or the railroad to transport the product from 1870 onwards.
UNESCO Geoparks and sustainable tourism
Geoparks were created in 1988 with the aim of managing sites and landscapes of international geological importance. Not all of them have international relevance, nor are they equally well known, so many suffer from neglect and degradation while today, others are a benchmark of respect for heritage.
The starting point to achieve this recognition, is having unique and rare geological features that are difficult to find elsewhere on the planet and that are of scientific interest.
For example, it is important that they preserve scenic beauty and that this geological wealth is closely linked to an enormous and demonstrable social and cultural footprint of hundreds and perhaps thousands of years. Colombia is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world and has exceptional sites that meet these requirements.
UNESCO geoparks are territories with an exceptional geological heritage that are managed under a sustainable development approach. These areas not only protect geological formations of great scientific value, but also promote education, tourism and the well-being of local communities.
The UNESCO Global Geoparks Network was born in 2004 with the purpose of recognizing and preserving geological sites of international relevance. For an area to be declared a geopark, it must meet rigorous criteria that include the uniqueness of its geological formations, the existence of a sustainable management plan and the active participation of the community in its conservation.
In 2020, there were 191 UNESCO geoparks worldwide. In the Americas, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, and Uruguay were among the countries with geoparks receiving this prestigious recognition.
The main objective of geoparks is to promote local economic development through geotourism and environmental education. In addition to their conservation function, these territories promote scientific and cultural activities, strengthening regional identity and promoting respect for the environment.
Currently, there are some 243 geoparks in the world, distributed in more than 40 countries. Some emblematic examples include the Basque Coast Geopark in Spain, the Zhangjiajie Geopark in China and the Pitons Geopark in St. Lucia.
In the context of climate crisis and biodiversity loss, geoparks represent a key strategy for the protection of the planet, combining conservation, development and education in a single model of sustainable management.