On Wednesday evening, 16 November 2022, some members of the Erasmus+ team at our school attended the public presentation of the Banská Bystrica Geopark at the Hotel Národný dom. Geopark – an interesting word. But what does it actually mean? Simply put – a geopark is an area containing one or more sites that are scientifically important in terms of their geological, archaeological, economic or cultural specificity. The Banská Bystrica Geopark, which enjoys the title of the most colourful one, includes the territory of the Starohorsko-Spaňodolinská and Ľubietovsko-ponice geomontane area. And why the most colourful? In cooperation with the State Geological Institute of Dionýz Štúr, it was possible to map the territory of the park and compile a list of 291 places that are unique natural, cultural, historical or technical monuments. And all this is in our surroundings, just a stone’s throw from the town we live in.
The Banska Bystrica Geopark civic association was founded in 2004 and brings together enthusiasts from the ranks of geologists, urban planners, historians and ecologists. Its mission is to promote interesting places, develop tourism in the area, support education and scientific research, but above all to protect unique monuments and natural phenomena so that what nature has managed to create here over millions of years and the results of the work of our ancestors in past centuries will be preserved for future generations.
Our school, Základná škola, Moskovská 2, also had a say in the presentation of the Geopark’s activities, as many of its activities are related to mining in the region. It is the centuries of honest mining work that have determined the current face of the environment and preserved for us technical or cultural monuments that we can admire even today. The Erasmus+ project «Jacob Fugger – a historical European influencer» looks at mining from different perspectives – historical, geological, ecological, economic, political or social. The representative of the school, Ms. Matejková, and the Erasmus+ project coordinator, Ms. Kostková, presented the origin, objectives, partner schools and the course of the project to the attendees. Successfully managed student mobility in Germany, Italy and Spain were described by the clever pupils who added some funny experiences as well. Standing in front of the members of the Geopark Association as well as the representatives of the regional mining associations was a good opportunity to thank them for their excellent cooperation, expert advice and guidance in the preparation and implementation of the project activities. Thanks to their help and support, the school has been able to meet the project objectives at a very high level.
teacher (English, German) from Banská Bystrica (Slovakia)