Monts d'Ardèche Geopark Project: reconnecting people with the geoheritage

Located in the south east of France, on the western edge of Massif Central, the Regional Natural Park of Monts d’Ardeche is an Aspiring Geopark, which offers a fantastic geological heritage. The geologi cal diversity in this area includes various elements linked to volcanism: well conserved strombolian cones, tens of kilometers of basalt columns, and ot her interesting geological objects such as granitic chaos, dinosaur’s footprin ts, etc. Although the Aspiring Geopark is well structured in terms of outreach and education, the Geopark label would help to highligh t the geological richness of the area and raise awareness about this unique regi on. The tourism policy of the Park is based on sustainable tourism (the Park is awarded as Charter Area for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Area since 201 1), and its development project is systematically based on the promotion of cultural and natural heritage. These heritages are naturally linked to t he geological settings, which shaped the landscapes of Ardeche and created the ri ght conditions for human settlement on this territory. However, the geologic al history is rarely integrated in the tourism activities. Connecting the discovery of the territory to the explanation of its origins seems to be the right wa y to offer a very special experience to everyone.