LivingGeography Newsletter #56
Jan 22nd-28th
Welcome to the fifty sixth weekly newsletter providing a summary of key posts on the LivingGeography blog.
Each newsletter will usually include a number of sections:
a digest of posts from the LivingGeography blog (and other blogs) - I passed 9.3 million page views this week.
any important geographical news
an update on any personal projects
details of books that I am reading, or cultural experiences such as music
a couple of nice images taken this week
events that you might be interested in
An early posting today to give people a chance to book to join a Webinar I’m involved with twice today - see the EVENTS section.
Posts
Not too many this week. I’ve been busy writing and preparing for events.
News of a BETT Award which is outlined later in the newsletter. This was very exciting to hear about!
A story on infrastructure tourism.
Details of new mapping of the land beneath Antarctica’s ice
A site exploring London’s pavement geology (and other locations).
I’ve also been adding contributions from readers to my World of Music blog. This has now had over 1500 page views, which is encouraging for its first month. Unlike most of my blogs, this one accepts contributions and guest blog posts, so please get involved. There’s a contact form and plenty of questions for you to answer by adding a comment.
There is a chance to join me on the RGS’s Education Committee later this year as an elected member. This is not a Council post, but a Committee post.
The image below shows the RGS Council chamber.
Nominations are now invited from Fellows for Committee positions to be elected in June 2026. They are as follows:
Research and Higher Education Committee - Chair of the Annual Conference 2027 (to serve on the committee June 2026-June 2028, a two-year term).
Research and Higher Education Committee - Member (to serve on the committee June 2026-June 2029, a three-year term).
Education Committee - Member (to serve on the committee June 2026-June 2030, a four-year term).
Professional Practice Committee - Member (to serve on the committee June 2026-June 2030, a four-year term).
Expeditions and Fieldwork Committee - Member (to serve on the committee June 2026-June 2030, a four-year term).
The expertise and interests of our Council and committee members represent the main areas of our activity and bring a breadth of experience from the wider world. The positions provide a valuable opportunity to contribute to the Society’s activities and serve as a direct influence on our strategic direction.
Nominations for candidates with the following key skills/expertise areas would be welcomed:
Education Committee - Member: Practical expertise, skills and knowledge as an established geography teacher and head of department at secondary level in either the maintained or private sector.
We are looking for a range of experience, genders, ethnicities, and ages to apply for these roles. If you are wondering whether any of the positions are right for you, or you have any queries, please contact the Director’s Office.
The deadline is 5.00pm on Thursday 19 March 2026 and all nominations should be sent to the Director, preferably via email: director@rgs.org
I look forward to working with whoever is elected for another 2 years.
News
At the BETT Awards 2026 last week, the CoastCraft game was awarded Best Secondary Digital Learning Product. Congratulations to all the team involved!! This is great news!
From the description:
CoastCraft is an educational game developed for Minecraft Education Edition (MEE) by Cornwall Council and the Environment Agency, as part of the £200m Flood and Coastal Innovation Programme. Supported by Microsoft and aimed at students aged 9-14, it aligns with Key Stage 2 and 3 of the National Curriculum and introduces learners to coastal processes, climate change, and sustainable decision-making.
Set in Bude, Cornwall, the game uses real-world data and future modelling to simulate environmental scenarios. Students explore erosion, dune ecosystems, and coastal adaptation through two minigames, then take on the role of a coastal manager in the main game. They make strategic choices, from present day to 2060, receiving feedback and sustainability scores based on the social, economic and environmental impacts of their actions or inactions.
CoastCraft is learner-led, supports inquiry-based learning, and includes a virtual careers fair in the endgame. It builds on the success of Rivercraft and Rivercraft 2, and is accessible globally via MEE, which used in over 40,000 school systems.
By combining immersive gameplay with curriculum relevance and real-world application, CoastCraft fills a gap in climate education and empowers students to explore the complexities of climate and coastal resilience.
I am proud to have been part of this project and to have worked on the Teacher Pack that goes along with the game to help its use in the classroom. See the game and the additional resources here. This was a year-long project, and I met some very talented people who worked on the project.
Don’t forget to vote in the GA Presidential election. There are three excellent candidates to choose from this year. The winner (who will be announced at the GA Conference in April) will serve as Vice President (2026–27), President (2027–28), and Immediate Past President (2028–29), sitting on the GA’s Board of Trustees throughout and working closely with the Chair of Trustees and Chief Executive. If you want to know more about every GA President to date, there’s my blog of course.
And also cast your vote in the GA Journal Awards if you are a member. Choose your favourite articles from the shortlists from the three GA journals below.
I also completed the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch as I have for many years. Important to be part of this citizen science project. Results will be announced in April.
Projects
More work was completed on the digital resources which will accompany the new ‘Discover Geography’ series, which is coming out in just over a month. I’ll share more of that once we are closer to publication date. The books are looking great.
Books
I have been reading a few new books: ‘Six Days in Iceland’ is short poetry and images from Alyson Hallett and Chris Caseldine based on a trip they made there together. Chris is also the author of one of my favourite Iceland books, the excellent ‘Most unimaginably strange’: a little hardback which explores the landscape and culture of Iceland. There are some lovely elements to the poetry book, which I tracked down via AbeBooks.
I also got Elizabeth Kolbert’s book out of the library: ‘Life on a little-known planet’. This is pretty great too. There are several books coming out in February too, including this one, from Neil Shea which is right up my street, and a new one on hopeful climate actions from Fred Pearce.
Images
No lovely images of Belgian cities this week sadly. Here’s a fish shop instead.
Gurneys, Drove Orchards between Holme-next-the-Sea and Thornham in North Norfolk - the finest fish shop - their fishcakes are the GOAT - image by Sally Parkinson, shared on Flickr under CC license
Events
This one is actually taking place twice today, so you’d better be quick.
You will probably be too late for the 10am webinar probably, but there’s also one repeated at 4pm, so that we can catch a number of international colleagues in other time zones. Check the details and register here.
We will be talking about the new ‘Discover Geography’ series from Collins as well as other geographical themes.
More speakers are being added to the line-up for the PTI / RGS / GA Geography Symposium in July, being hosted by the RGS-IBG. Check it out. Looks like being an excellent event. I’m pleased to say that I will be part of the event, so I hope to see you there. One of the event’s themes is Everyday Geographies, and I shall be talking about that. I’ve just been added to the website page where you can find out more and book your ticket. I’m very excited about this one.
The latest RGS Online Teachmeet is going to take place at 5pm on the 5th of February. A good line up of speakers - tickets are free.
Programme:
New directions, redrawn maps: Positioning geography curriculum for a changing classroom, Laura Bradshaw, Gems Education, Dubai.
Keeping the noise down: When, why and how to use silent work in geography classrooms, Ed McCann, Gartree High School, Leicester.
GIS-T: Teaching about Climate Change with the help of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Sophie Wilson, St Mary’s University, Twickenham, London
Importance of building a professional pathway for geography students, Emma Meredith, Built Environment Schools Trust
Everyday spaces, geographical minds: Fieldwork that starts in the school grounds, Urszula Broadway, Arcadia Academy British International School
Teaching socially and culturally sensitive geography within multinational walls, Yvette Beckford Dawkins, Whitgift School
Emma Espley is organising a GlosGeog Worldwise Quiz activity at the end of February - details below:
A GA Tyne and Wear Branch Lecture if you are in the NE on the theme of AI and data centres.
Contact James or Brenda if you want to attend.
The RGS is having a Winter Film Night in February. Details on the link below:
The theme is Journeys with a Purpose.
Tickets are £12, and £10 for Society members.
The Farming Futures Cycle Tour: a cycling-based fieldwork adventure In Spring 2025, Veronica White embarked on the Farming Futures Cycle Tour – a low-carbon, human-powered PhD fieldwork adventure. Over the course of 12 weeks, she cycled 2,000 miles across England, stopping along the way to interview women in farming communities, aiming to diversify visions for the future of farming. This film shows some of the highlights and challenges that Veronica experienced during her expedition.
Exploring Forgotten Landscapes follows filmmaker Sam Chevallier as he joins Chris Boyes and the Hankuzi Explorations deep into the heart of the Congo (DRC). Together with a team of local and international scientists, supported by courageous rangers, they embark on an 18-day expedition through the remote and wild Upemba National Park. Their mission is to collect vital ecological data, work that supports the protection of biodiversity and ecosystem services in one of Africa’s most overlooked regions.
This is a film about courage, commitment, and connection. It highlights the tireless efforts of those on the front lines of conservation, risking their lives to safeguard what remains of our planet’s natural heritage. The world can no longer ignore these forgotten places. We must protect what gives us life, for ourselves and for the children of tomorrow.More Than A Mountain is a short film about community over competition that flips the script on who gets to be seen as strong, bold and brave. Led by Jo Bradshaw, a former no-saying, height-hating comfort lover turned Everest and Seven Summiteer, fifteen women from all walks of life, aged between 29 and 71, embark on an emotional and physically demanding trek to the summit of Yala Peak, a 5,500 meter mountain in Nepal, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first female ascent of Mount Everest by the Japanese mountaineer Junko Tabei. The film presses the point not that women can, but that they are and have always been pushing the limits of adventure. They climb in honour of Junko Tabei and for every woman whose achievements have been hidden in history.
Flows for Manatees is an environmental story to celebrate, but also a call for conservation. On the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico a new manatee habitat has been discovered. Local cave instructor Luis Leal and explorer Klaus Thymann spent weeks diving and exploring, documenting a manatee mother and calf. The species is endangered: there are fewer than 200 in the Caribbean, and how few are in Mexico is unknown. From above it looks like a small lake, but the water actually connects to the ocean via an underground passage, so is in fact a coastal lagoon. The whole ecosystem relies on the flow of water between the sea and inland waterways, through rivers, caves, sinkholes (known as cenotes) and even through the porous limestone rock. But while the ocean and the lagoon are two parts of the same thing for these mammals, in Mexican law they are treated differently. The Caribbean Sea has a marine protected area but the inland lagoon does not. It might sound like an absurd administrative error but the fact that they are indeed connected is not reflected in law.
DOWNSTREAM is a journey from ice to ocean along three great rivers: the Rhône, the Columbia and the Waitaki. Guided by hydro-ecologist Dr Juliette Becquet, the film meets winemakers, salmon fishers and farmers whose lives rise and fall with glacier-fed water. As the glaciers retreat, each river reveals a different future – for our landscapes, our cultures and our sports. With sweeping mountain scenes and honest conversations on the riverbanks, DOWNSTREAM shows that what happens high in the peaks shapes every glass we pour, every field we farm and every line we ski. This one sounds particularly good.
Here’s an event that’s taking place tomorrow at the Ley’s School in Cambridge:
Tomorrow, there’s a webinar from Oxford International Geography.
Thursday 29 January 2026
2.00pm - 3.00pm GMT
Join our upcoming webinar, From local to global: Understanding our world through Geography, with Oxford University Press author Katy Patchwood. Katy will introduce the new Oxford International Geography resources and share approaches to developing key skills such as map reading, graph interpretation, and design, while exploring global case studies, cross-curricular challenges, and creative ways to bring fieldwork into the classroom.
The webinar will also focus on creating positive and engaging learning experiences — moving from worry to wonder and fostering curiosity, wellbeing, and joy in the curriculum. You’ll leave with practical ideas to support all learners!
Register for the webinar here.
Next Monday there is also a useful sounding session being organised by Sophie Wilson at St. Mary’s University Twickenham for the local GA Branch. Its taking place online once again, and will be lead by Graeme Schofield, who is the Geography Subject Lead for the Oak National Academy. Good for Primary Geographers. Contact Sophie to book your place.
Thanks as always for reading (and subscribing)