From Geotourism and Geoeducation, to Geoheritage: the Value of Tangible and Intangible Heritage

This research aimed to explore the emerging challenges and the rapid evolution of awareness of the value of the geo-heritage of one’s territory; particularly how this can evolve both in a value for geotourism and in effective educational paths. An attempt has been made to demonstrate, through a few examples, that the construction of a sensitivity towards a tourism attentive to geological and geomorphological values, important because it leads to greater attention to the sites, their conservation and protection and ultimately to respect for the environment, requires, for their effective valorization, scientific knowledge, albeit at different levels of depth, of what is observed, of what is protected, and above all of what natural phenomena are the result. It is easy to appreciate, observe, photograph, and keep the memory of a beautiful mountain, a landscape, or a particularly original geological or geomorphological aspect, often identifiable with a geosite. It is less easy to recognize that the same value for the purposes of geoconservation, and therefore of valorization, can be attributed to phenomena, perhaps less beautiful from an aesthetic and environmental point of view, with a lower visual impact, significant both from a geological point of view, but even more historical, cultural, anthropic, revealing unexpected connections and transversal cultural and intangible values between different cultural areas. These sites, places, contexts can have a profound impact on human sensitivity and perception, transforming a geological place into a place of cultures, a geo-site into a geoheritage-site. This research has tried to deepen this aspect, proposing some cases, situated in an author’s known context, and particularly appreciated by the author, precisely because of the wealth of stimuli they can provide to the interested tourist, but also to the student to whom we wish to convey the perception of richness and depth of an environmental context, rich in scientific contents but also in cultural values.