The Mining History of Greece in School Textbooks: The Case of Lignite

The geological education in Greece is essentially rooted in the second half of the 19th century, since 1836, when secondary education was established in Greece. Although geology is referred to in all educational programs, its field was not taught before 1880, due to the lack of competent teachers and suitable books. Geological education in Greece was established as a ”necessary” science at the end of the above century, during Greece’s opening phase of mining activity. In particular, the first attempt to exploit lignite deposits began in Aliveri (Evia) in 1873, but the intensive exploitation in Aliveri began after the First World War, reaching an annual production of 23,000 tons by the end of 1927. Respectively, lignite mining began in Ptolemais in the 1950s and Megalopolis in the 1960s. In the present paper, the correlation of the lignite mining activity in Greece for electricity generation with the content of geoscience textbooks is investigated since it is widely accepted that education is directly linked to economic development.

Comfortable contemplation

<p>Through the design of memorial baths on the West Coast, this thesis proposes that through an increased understanding and interpretation of place identity, memorialisation can precipitate a process of understanding and healing. This process leads the visitor to gain a heightened level of mental wellbeing. This research sheds light on, and provides an alternative to, the present state of memorials in New Zealand, identifying them as places to heal. It provides a solution of a memorial that connects people, their thoughts and memories to architecture. This is achieved through the application of the Kessler – Kübler-Ross model by facilitating participants’ experience of grief through the bargaining, depression and acceptance stages. This thesis proposes an architectural solution that sufficiently memorializes lost gold miners of the West Coast and their way of life. It also enquires into the somewhat aberrant architectural culture and identity of the West Coast and identifies methods of preserving this architectural regionalism before it is lost. This quickly disappearing West Coast identity and architectural regionalism becomes a further stimulant for memorialisation. The architectural form and composition respond to mining history and the miner’s way of life. This memorial, located deep within the Southern Alps hosts a series of natural thermal baths and contemplative spaces that prompt reflection and inner thought, transporting the visitor toward an improved level of mental wellbeing through a means of triggering memory, and providing spaces that prompt contemplation.</p>

Comfortable contemplation

<p>Through the design of memorial baths on the West Coast, this thesis proposes that through an increased understanding and interpretation of place identity, memorialisation can precipitate a process of understanding and healing. This process leads the visitor to gain a heightened level of mental wellbeing. This research sheds light on, and provides an alternative to, the present state of memorials in New Zealand, identifying them as places to heal. It provides a solution of a memorial that connects people, their thoughts and memories to architecture. This is achieved through the application of the Kessler – Kübler-Ross model by facilitating participants’ experience of grief through the bargaining, depression and acceptance stages. This thesis proposes an architectural solution that sufficiently memorializes lost gold miners of the West Coast and their way of life. It also enquires into the somewhat aberrant architectural culture and identity of the West Coast and identifies methods of preserving this architectural regionalism before it is lost. This quickly disappearing West Coast identity and architectural regionalism becomes a further stimulant for memorialisation. The architectural form and composition respond to mining history and the miner’s way of life. This memorial, located deep within the Southern Alps hosts a series of natural thermal baths and contemplative spaces that prompt reflection and inner thought, transporting the visitor toward an improved level of mental wellbeing through a means of triggering memory, and providing spaces that prompt contemplation.</p>

The Miedzianka Mountain Ore Deposit (Świętokrzyskie Mountains, Poland) as a Site of Historical Mining and Geological Heritage: A Case Study of the Teresa Adit

There are numerous traces of mining activity in the Miedzianka Mountain (Świętokrzyskie Mountains, Poland), because copper and silver ores have been mined in this region since at least the 13th century. The history of scientific research on the Miedzianka Mountain ore deposit spans almost 200 years. Almost 40 minerals have been found: ore minerals of Cu and Fe, and also secondary minerals, including carbonates, sulphates and even very rare arsenates, phosphates and vanadates. Three new minerals have been found, staszicite, lubeckite and miedziankite, but their chemical composition has not been precisely determined and therefore their names have not been approved by the International Mineralogical Association (IMA). The Miedzianka Mountain deposit is an important area on the map of educational activities. It is included in the “Świętokrzyskie Archaeological and Geological Trail” as a site of historical (mining and metallurgy) and natural (geological sciences) heritage. Despite the large potential, none of the underground workings (adits and shafts) are currently available to the public. Our research and exploration of the Teresa adit, which is one of the historical underground complexes of the Miedzianka Mountain, show that this adit displays a wide spectrum of topics in the field of mineralogy, geology and mining history. The Teresa adit, which is a 523 m system of underground corridors, contains 270 m of natural karst caves altered by mining works and is constituted of Upper Devonian limestones, locally cut by cherry shales. In several sites of the adit unique features can be observed, such as: (1) old mining works—galleries carved in the rock back in the 19th century; (2) interesting vein mineralization with secondary-colored copper carbonates and multi-colored calcite veins; (3) mineralization with azurite domination; and (4) karst phenomena (coatings, flowstone, dripstones and stalactites) in a cave part of the adit. The sites with unique features suggest that the Teresa adit is highly suitable to be presented to tourists. That is why we propose seven sites on the underground route that could be the basis for further projects to create a “geotouristic trail” in the Teresa adit. The proposal to make the Teresa adit available to tourists is in line with the tendency to protect the post-industrial landscape associated with former mining activities.

‘It’s part of our community, where we live’: Urban heritage and children’s sense of place

The literature on a ‘sense of place’ often sidelines the voices of children. Consequently, little is known about how children can be encouraged to develop a sense of place. This matters because a sense of place involves feelings of belonging and attachment, and can contribute to children’s wellbeing and identity. Informed by the research of Bartos and Severcan, we deploy data from a qualitative research project in a primary school in a former coalfield area in the north-east of England to argue that children’s experiences of learning about their urban local history and heritage can help to develop their sense of place. Placing children’s voices centrally in our research, we explore how they engage with learning about local mining history, and the impact of place-based pedagogy. Emphasising the possibilities and importance of their deep involvement with their urban heritage, we show, firstly, the ways in which children’s sense of place is strengthened when they develop a feeling of ownership over their own history. Secondly, we explore how children develop a sense of place through engaging their emotions and physicality, and, thirdly, their senses. We conclude that learning about local history through place-based pedagogy allows children to create and interpret historical events and develop a sense of place. Taking ownership of their history makes the children active participants in telling the story of their place. Children can then develop new ways of seeing themselves in places, as they make connections between the past, present and future.

Inventory of Locations of Old Mining Works Using LiDAR Data: A Case Study in Slovakia

The concept of further sustainable development in the area of administration of the register of old mining works and recent mining works in Slovakia requires precise determination of the locations of the objects that constitute it. The objects in this register have their uniqueness linked with the history of mining in Slovakia. The state of positional accuracy in the registration of objects in its current form is unsatisfactory. Different database sources containing the locations of the old mining works are insufficient and show significant locational deviations. For this reason, it is necessary to precisely locate old mining works using modern measuring technologies. The most effective approach to solving this problem is the use of LiDAR data, which at the same time allow determining the position and above-ground shape of old mining works. Two localities with significant mining history were selected for this case study. Positional deviations in the location of old mining works among the selected data were determined from the register of old mining works in Slovakia, global navigation satellite system (GNSS) measurements, multidirectional hill-shading using LiDAR, and accessible data from the open street map. To compare the positions of identical old mining works from the selected database sources, we established differences in the coordinates (ΔX, ΔY) and calculated the positional deviations of the same objects. The average positional deviation in the total count of nineteen objects comparing documents, LiDAR data, and the register was 33.6 m. Comparing the locations of twelve old mining works between the LiDAR data and the open street map, the average positional deviation was 16.3 m. Between the data sources from GNSS and the registry of old mining works, the average positional deviation of four selected objects was 39.17 m.