1st CIRCULAR
The 4th International Symposium on
@@@@@@@@@@@Terrestrial Environmental Changes in East Eurasia and Adjacent Areas
Date: December 6-10, 2005
Venue: Gyeongju (Gyeongju TEMF Hotel), Korea (ROK)
(Korean Character g경주교육문화회관h)
Tel: +82-54-745-8100 Fax: +82-54-748-8394 http://www.temf.co.kr
Organizer:
Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM)
Sponsors:
Kanazawa University (Institute of Nature and Environmental Technology, 21st C-COE
program), Japan
Nagoya University (21st C-COE program), Japan
Collaborating bodies:
Institute of Geochemistry, SB RAS, Russia
State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment (IEE), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), China
Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources (IGMR), Mongolian Academy of Sciences (MAS), Mongolia
The Korean Quaternary Association (KOQUA)
The Korean Society of Geomorphology (KSG)
The Korean Paleolithic Society (KPS)
Korean Association for Ancient Studies (KAAS)
Commission on Stratigraphy, INQUA
Background -
The Symposium of Earth Environment was initially held in Mongolia (2001), and was subsequently in Japan (Kanazawa, 2003), China (Xifan, 2004) and will be in Korea (Gyeongju, 2005) among the East Asian and adjacent countries. The title of the 4th International Symposium is the gTerrestrial Environmental Change of East Eurasia and Adjacent Areash, which cover the regions of Loess Plateau, Pan-Yellow Sea, Pan-East Sea (Japan Sea), East Siberia and Beringia. The regions that are located in the zone of mid to high latitude are highly sensitive to potential climatic changes. The regions are not only affected by westerly circulation but also controlled by East Asian monsoon which are imprinted by varying degrees of winter and summer monsoons. During the winter, high pressure system in East Siberia dominates the climate of this region. Cold air mass from Siberia absorbs a large amount of evaporated water from the East Sea (Japan Sea). During the summer, Asian summer monsoon influenced by the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau dominates. For these reasons, climates and environmental processes in the regions are closely related to each other.
In this symposium, terrestrial processes of modern and ancient environments are particularly emphasized. The studies of millennial- to decadal-scaled change records of terrestrial environments such as modern and ancient lakes, dry lands, wetlands, mountain glaciers, high plateaus and coastal areas have produced important proxy data to predict future. And now we recognize that these proxy data and biomarkers are as important as those obtained from the studies on the marine sediments and ice cores. The advantages of using terrestrial records have been demonstrated by many important studies including those based on high-resolution records of catchment environments. These records include not only the information about natural environments (physical, chemical and biological records), but also that about artificial ones. By adopting appropriate approaches and using proper methods, recent developments of studies on the lake sediments and catchment environments provided essential clues regarding the detailed environmental processes and changes strongly influenced by human activities.
In this International Symposium, members of the Joint Scientific Program from Korea, Japan, Russia, China and Mongolia will discuss four major topics: 1) modelling and prediction of regional climatic changes, 2) geoscientific records of regional climatic changes in the terrestrial environments: paleolakes, dry lands, wetlands, mountain glaciers, high plateaus, coastal areas and catchments, 3) paleontology, material cycles and geoarcheology, and 4) extreme surface processes: landslides, neotectonics, anthropogenic contamination and seismic hazards.
All of these topics cover studies dealing with records of environmental changes and these records can be used as proxies for information of both natural and anthropogenic environments. For example, some lake sediments contain the records of environmental changes influenced by anthropogenic processes as well as climatic and hydro-geomorphic ones.
High resolution data, paleontology and material cycles obtained from modern and ancient lake sediments and other lake-catchment systems have become more and more important in the prediction of surface hazards caused by extreme meteorological events. Neotectonic, seismic, and geomorphic hazards are pivotally important in the western Pacific areas to maintain sustainable human environments.
Combined data from the monitoring of present surface processes, past human histories and paleo-information can be properly used for the construction of sustainable future because these past records are the keys to the prediction of future processes. In this symposium, these issues will be discussed based on the results of the studies reported here. Some issues will be discussed more thoroughly and they can be selected as topics for the next Symposium on East Eurasia. The active and friendly cooperation among member countries will bring forth fruitful results. In addition, a success of this joint program will help to establish a solid foundation of scientific achievements and friendship among countries in East Eurasia.
Provisional program -
Tuesday Dec. 6, 2005
Arrival at 1) Incheon International Airport (west of Seoul) – Gyeongju Terminal/ Hotel
2) Gimhae International Airport (northern Busan) – Gyeongju Terminal/ Hotel
Wednesday Dec. 7, 2005
Open session, scientific session and reception
Conference Hall: Annex B/C (3rd floor)
Banquet Hall: Annex D (3rd floor)
Thursday Dec. 8, 2005
Scientific sessions, poster session, closing session and Symposium dinner
Conference Hall: Annex B/C (3rd floor of Annex Building)
Banquet Hall: Edelweiss (2nd floor of Main Building)
Friday Dec. 9, 2005:
1) Full-day field excursion (surface geomorphic process in SE coast, Korea)
2) City tour at museum and historical sites (after 15:00)
3) Farewell dinner
Saturday Dec. 10, 2005: Departure
Leaving from Hotel to 1) Gimhae International Airport /
2) Gyeongju Terminal – Incheon International Airport