EGM 30 download.pdf - European Federation of Geologists

On regulations and renewalsRegulationsThe EFG Statutes and Regulations areimportant documents that underpin thesmooth running of the Federation. Inaddition, the statutes and regulations canbe used to demonstrate to members andother professional organizations that EFGis organized and run in a structured andprofessional manner.The Statues had remained unchangedfor most of the life of the EFG whilst theRegulations were last updated in 2002. In2008, Council decided that the time hadcome for a fundamental review of thesedocuments by the Registration Authority.The main reason that a review was deemednecessary was that a series of changesover the years had resulted in a number ofinconsistencies, and that the regulationsno longer reflected the way that the EFGwanted to operate.This process has now been completedwith updated Statutes which are publishedon the EFG web site. The full set of regulationshas also now been completed and wasapproved by Council in May 2010.The main change that has arisen in theGeneralG1 Schedule of RegulationsG2 Statutes and Regulations: complianceG3 Publications and CommunicationsG4 Use of the Common SealG5 AwardsCode of EthicsC1 Code of EthicsC2 Grievance and Disciplinary ProceduresOperation of the European Federation of GeologistsN1 Membership of the EFGN2 Subscriptions and Fees for Members of EFGN3 Working Groups and Panels of ExpertsN4 Operation of the OfficeN5 Projects and ContractsN6 Financial ManagementN7 Election of OfficersN8 Council MeetingsN9 The BoardEuropean GeologistE1 Criteria for award of title of European GeologistE2 Procedure for award of title of European GeologistE3 National Vetting CommitteesE4 Licensed BodiesE5 Registration AuthorityE6 Continuing Professional DevelopmentE7 Subscriptions and fees for European Geologistsreview is that the regulations have beensplit into a series of separate documentswhich will make it much easier to maintainin the coming years. The schedule of regulationsis shown in the box below.The task of editing and updating thestatutes and regulations largely fell to BobChaplow my predecessor as Chair of theRegistration Authority, and the EFG oweshim a big vote of thanks for the hugecontribution this task has made to the professionaloperation of EFG; thanks arealso due to those Council members whoassisted in the review process.RenewalsOne of the changes that the revision ofthe regulations has confirmed is for therenewal of the EurGeol. title to be nowmade on an annual basis, rather thanthe previous triennial arrangement. Thismeans that every EurGeol. has to provideall the details for renewal to the relevantLicensed body annually. A renewal consistsof payment of the annual EurGeol. feeand the provision of a CPD record.The provision of an annual CPD returnis a requirement of maintaining your Eur-Geol. status. This return can either beelectronic or on aproforma summarysheet sent on paperor as a pdf andalthough there is noparticular requiredformat, templatesare provided on theEFG web pages. Itis not necessaryfor all evidenceand documentationin support ofthe statement to beprovided.Once a returnis provided to theLicensed Body, theEurGeol. shouldassume that it hasbeen receivedand is satisfactoryunless thereis correspondenceto the contrary.A small numberof returns are randomlyselected foraudit, and in thesecases the LicensedBody might call forfurther supportinginformation.CPD reports are sent to the relevantLicensed Body. This is either a NationalBody (IGI Ireland, ICOG Spain, CHGEOLSwitzerland and GSL UK) or the InternationalBody which is administered throughthe EFG Office in Brussels.David NorburyChair, EFG Registration AuthorityNews from SpainFirst Spanish Geological OlympiadGeology as a science, wishes to join theScientific Olympiad and in order to do so,several Spanish geological associations,coordinated by the Spanish Association forthe Teaching of Earth Sciences (AEPECT),decided to organize the 1 st Spanish GeologicalOlympiad.This Olympiad was held for the firsttime internationally during the InternationalYear of Planet Earth (IYPE). Its firstcall took place at Seoul National University(Korea) in September 2007. AEPECTpresented the project to the IYPE Commissionbut funding failed, but the firstGeological Olympiad was carried out inSpain in the Basque Country in 2009. Theextraordinary success of this call encouragedus to promote this Olympiad at anational level.We aimed to stimulate students ofEarth Sciences as well as to promote theadvancement and dissemination of geologyin today’s world. So that geology,as a branch of science with an enormouseducational value, can also have an importantcultural aspect. It is hoped that theGeological Olympiad, more than a mereexam, is turning into a true celebrationof geology.During this first event, participationwas voluntary. Some regions had no participants,but the objective in future callsis a global participation so that we willbe able to attend the International GeologicalOlympiad. The regional phase wasconducted at the provincial level throughoutFebruary 2010 with 600 participatingstudents.Development of the national phase ofthe OlympiadThe national phase took place from 27-28March in Madrid (Figs 1&2), with theparticipation of three winners from theregional phase. During this first part ofthe competition, participants had to demonstratetheir knowledge by answeringquestions at the Faculty of Geology inMadrid.EFG News and Events 2010European Geologist 3041