Resumé
The 2008 Annual Review provides a brief insight into a challenging year during which the significance of geoscience for society has received a lot of international attention.
In 2008, GEUS found its place in the new Danish Ministry of Climate and Energy, while also maintaining close cooperation with its primary stakeholders, the Ministry of the Environment, the Green land Home Rule and the Ministry of Science, Tech nology and Innovation.
Climate change and its possible effects have impacted both the scientific and political agendas. At GEUS we have focused on the areas in which we can contribute to research-based decisions. We have advised on water, ice, nature and renewable energy, and we have also worked with fossil-fuel resources, as these are still an important part of energy production and security of supply.
Work in Denmark on preventing flooding and securing the groundwater resource has aroused great interest in GEUS’ model calculations of the water cycle, while in the energy field there has been focus on the possibilities of geothermal heat and storage of CO2. Monitoring of Greenland’s ice sheet is progressing well and with a great deal of outside interest.
The possibility of oil/gas resources in Greenland and the Arctic has attracted international interest. Therefore, in 2008 GEUS launched a long-term programme in North-East Greenland to reveal the area’s hydrocarbon potential.
Interest in minerals in Greenland has also been extensive for most of 2008, but the financial crisis has temporarily toned down activity. Work by GEUS and the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum to develop areas and arouse interest in mineral exploitation continues, however.
The “yes” from Greenland in the referendum in November 2008 on self governance is expected to lead to new cooperation agreements between GEUS and the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum which, in line with recommendations from the Self Governance Commission and existing agreements be tween the Danish government and the Greenland Home Rule, will establish a long-term, continuous and promising collaboration to the benefit of both parties. Mapping the continental shelf in five areas as the basis for Danish territorial claims has put the work of GEUS into a new international context and attracted overwhelming international interest from the public and many organisations who want information about the project and about the Convention of the Law of the Sea.
In 2008, GEUS expanded its participation in international collaboration. GEUS is now represented on the board of EuroGeoSurveys and it has set up a project unit with four other surveys to form The North Atlantic Geoscience Group which will gather research expertise on the North Sea/North Atlantic. International project work, especially with the Third World has also grown, and new partners have formally applied to work with GEUS, including the China Geological Survey (CGS).
In 2008, the Nordic countries hosted the International Geological Congress in Oslo, with 6,000 delegates. GEUS had a leading role for Denmark in planning the Congress, and the Danish Minister for Climate and Energy, Connie Hedegaard, was a key guest on the climate day.
During its initial year, Geocenter Denmark has developed well, with several joint projects and improving national and international influence. The Center also established a joint professorship in climate research, to which Prof. Jörn Thiede, previous director of the Alfred Wegener Institute, was appointed.
On the financial side, we are pleased to report that in 2008 GEUS was granted access to basic funding from the globalisation pool on an equal footing with universities. We hope that this development will continue.
2008 has been a challenging year, both organisationally and financially, but GEUS has emerged successful from these challenges. We are looking forward to 2009, confident that growing international cooperation and recognition of GEUS as an important research institution with activities of special interest to society will establish a stable financial foundation for the institution.
In 2008, GEUS found its place in the new Danish Ministry of Climate and Energy, while also maintaining close cooperation with its primary stakeholders, the Ministry of the Environment, the Green land Home Rule and the Ministry of Science, Tech nology and Innovation.
Climate change and its possible effects have impacted both the scientific and political agendas. At GEUS we have focused on the areas in which we can contribute to research-based decisions. We have advised on water, ice, nature and renewable energy, and we have also worked with fossil-fuel resources, as these are still an important part of energy production and security of supply.
Work in Denmark on preventing flooding and securing the groundwater resource has aroused great interest in GEUS’ model calculations of the water cycle, while in the energy field there has been focus on the possibilities of geothermal heat and storage of CO2. Monitoring of Greenland’s ice sheet is progressing well and with a great deal of outside interest.
The possibility of oil/gas resources in Greenland and the Arctic has attracted international interest. Therefore, in 2008 GEUS launched a long-term programme in North-East Greenland to reveal the area’s hydrocarbon potential.
Interest in minerals in Greenland has also been extensive for most of 2008, but the financial crisis has temporarily toned down activity. Work by GEUS and the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum to develop areas and arouse interest in mineral exploitation continues, however.
The “yes” from Greenland in the referendum in November 2008 on self governance is expected to lead to new cooperation agreements between GEUS and the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum which, in line with recommendations from the Self Governance Commission and existing agreements be tween the Danish government and the Greenland Home Rule, will establish a long-term, continuous and promising collaboration to the benefit of both parties. Mapping the continental shelf in five areas as the basis for Danish territorial claims has put the work of GEUS into a new international context and attracted overwhelming international interest from the public and many organisations who want information about the project and about the Convention of the Law of the Sea.
In 2008, GEUS expanded its participation in international collaboration. GEUS is now represented on the board of EuroGeoSurveys and it has set up a project unit with four other surveys to form The North Atlantic Geoscience Group which will gather research expertise on the North Sea/North Atlantic. International project work, especially with the Third World has also grown, and new partners have formally applied to work with GEUS, including the China Geological Survey (CGS).
In 2008, the Nordic countries hosted the International Geological Congress in Oslo, with 6,000 delegates. GEUS had a leading role for Denmark in planning the Congress, and the Danish Minister for Climate and Energy, Connie Hedegaard, was a key guest on the climate day.
During its initial year, Geocenter Denmark has developed well, with several joint projects and improving national and international influence. The Center also established a joint professorship in climate research, to which Prof. Jörn Thiede, previous director of the Alfred Wegener Institute, was appointed.
On the financial side, we are pleased to report that in 2008 GEUS was granted access to basic funding from the globalisation pool on an equal footing with universities. We hope that this development will continue.
2008 has been a challenging year, both organisationally and financially, but GEUS has emerged successful from these challenges. We are looking forward to 2009, confident that growing international cooperation and recognition of GEUS as an important research institution with activities of special interest to society will establish a stable financial foundation for the institution.
| Originalsprog | Dansk |
|---|---|
| Forlag | De Nationale Geologiske Undersøgelser for Danmark og Grønland |
| Antal sider | 18 |
| ISBN (Trykt) | 978-87-7871-248-6 |
| Status | Udgivet - 2009 |
Programområde
- Programområde 1: Data