Pop up shop part 2 AND MAPS! - a podcast by Whitestone Geopark

Geopark - Sasha Says – Pop up shop and maps

Geoeducator: We're in the pop up shop, which is and Thames St in Oamaru. So we're going to be opening in March time as a kind of information centre for people to drop by, learn about what the Geopark is, and some of the things on offer. So we're currently just renovating, getting our displays ready, painting - we're going to have this very impressive mural of a plesiosaur the entire length of the building, which I imagine that lots of kids who are into prehistoric creatures will love to come and have a look at it. So that's where we are for this morning.   

I won't to let too much away. But we are going to be having a video display of something we've been working on. We're going to have lots of information on Zealandia - how it was formed. We'll have brochures to give away to people to help them organise their day, what they want to see (or their week), where they want to travel to and explore. And we're working alongside Oamaru Rocks as well. They're going to have a presence here as well as the North Otago Rock and Mineral Club - they're also going to have a presence here as well. So we'll be able to let a few more details away the closer that we get to the time. But it's going to be an exciting space and we're going to have activities for people to come in and do as well as take away. So we're just excited about engaging with the community. And if people out their have got a community group who they think would like to get involved with the Geopark - if you can just contact me at my email geoeducator@whitestonegeopark.nz, then we can see if we can sort something out. So it's all about community engagement and getting people excited about this wonderful place that we live in. 

So at the moment we've been working on maps for the Geopark. I like maps - who doesn't like a map. So we've been collating quite a few different maps on the area. Now, I don't know, there'll be people out there that are kind of old school and like looking up an atlas and that's the category I fit into. So, you know, go back to your childhood and you get the atlas out and there will be all the maps at the front of like population distribution and agricultural uses and things like that. And I just think there's so much that you can get from a map. Obviously digital maps have their place, completely. But there is something about having a paper map that you can not get with a digital map. So my favorite two maps are topography maps and geological maps. So one of the things that I want to introduce to people in the Pop-Up Shop is just some basic map reading skills as well. And we're going to have some really old maps on display. Well, when I say old, they are old, but we've reprinted them - from the 1950s of the geology of the area from a really well-known geologist could Gauge. And so they're going to be up. So if you'd like to come in and have a look to see, you know, an area that you're familiar with, ohh you know, how's this been mapped before? What rocks are here? What has he said - are there any faults in this area? Things like that. You can come and have a look here - bearing in mind that there has been a lot of more recent work done and people are always discovering new things. But it's always interesting to look at old maps and just get a feel of what's out there, have a look at the way any other land forms have changed, like river channels, things like that. So, yeah, I'm gonna be pushing a bit of map education I think from in here.

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