Menu
Return

GeoSust – Buzău Land and sustainable development

Have you ever wondered where all our ideas come from? Or where do we get the information we use in museums, on trails or in our daily work?

A few years ago we had a very big project called GeoSust. Geo from Earth, and Sust from Sustainability. It was funded by Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein through the EEA Grants program. It was an applied research project, i.e. a project whose results remain not only in books and articles, but are applied experimentally for the good of society.

GeoSust is a landmark for us and for Buzău Land. For example, our current team has emerged and strengthened during this period. Then, it allowed us to truly discover Buzău Land. For 3 years, between 2014 and 2017, we researched throughout this entire territory.

We studied the environment: landslides, water chemistry, natural radioactivity, but also the quality of the air inside the houses. We studied plants and habitats to find out what rare plants we find, what precious habitats, but also what useful or harmful plants grow in the Land. We also studied people: customs, stories, holidays, stories, music, objects, clothes and much more.

We studied the landscape, the totality of human and natural elements, the interaction between man and nature, and the way people perceive the environment. In other words, we sought to understand the relationship between man and the environment. Equally, we discovered the natural and cultural resources of the Land and we realized how we can capitalize on them. We also found out what are the challenges of developing this territory.

GeoSust was an interdisciplinary project in which many specialists from different fields came together, united by a common goal. Geologists have collaborated with biologists, chemists, physicists, ethnographers, anthropologists, landscapers, geographers, architects, and even artists, graphic designers and software developers. And so, geologists came to look for flowers, biologists for traditional clothes and ethnographers for stones.

It was at the same time a transdisciplinary project in which the specialists worked closely with the inhabitants of the area. We met, we talked, we started working together and we tried to find solutions to the challenges of the area. Everything with the people who live here. In a short time, we became part of the community. Moreover, we took the first steps towards community involvement and activation. Community involvement is an issue we value a lot: an area can only develop from those who live there.

It was a long, beautiful and complicated job. But of course, in order to do so many things we benefited from a lot of support. In addition to the specialists of our team, almost 60 researchers worked on the project. We were joined by specialists from the Institute of Geodynamics of the Romanian Academy, from the University of Bucharest, from the Museum of the Romanian Peasant, from the Geoecomar Institute and from Babeș-Bolyai University, but also specialists from Norway!

Beyond really discovering what Buzău Land means, GeoSust gave us the great opportunity to collaborate with our colleagues and friends in Norway. We had a lot to learn from each other and we laid the foundations of a lasting partnership, which continues today. These are researchers from the Norwegian University for Life Sciences, the Telemark Institute, the University of South-East Norway, the Aurland company and the Gea Norvegica Geopark.

It was a long, beautiful work with many results. This project is based on the experience of our team. And to answer the above question: the results of the project are the bottomless bag from which we extract the ideas, information and stories we present to you. Also, from this project the sustainable development strategies of the area that we now apply and improve were born.

Are you curious to know more about GeoSust? Project reports are available below. Enjoy your reading!