“Planet Earth: from Space to Place”: A multimedia exhibition at UNESCO

• © UNESCO
• The exhibition website

Films, photographs, emblematic objects and distinctive plants from different regions testifying to the Planet’s diversity will be displayed at UNESCO Headquarters from 16 October to 3 November 2007 throughout the General Conference. The exhibition entitled “Planet Earth: from Space to Place” comes ahead of the International Year of Planet Earth in 2008.

The Director-General will inaugurate the exhibition on 16 October in the presence of Carl XVI Gustaf, King of Sweden, and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors Claudia Cardinale, the Italian actress; and Jean Malaurie, the French ethnologist and historian.

The exhibition highlights UNESCO’s activities in connection with sustainable development and climate change. It shows how the natural, social and human sciences, culture, education, communication and information work together towards a common goal. It is structured around five themes: the Earth System, the Dynamic Earth, the Diverse Earth, the Changing Earth and Sustaining the Earth.

The Earth System focuses on geosciences, terrestrial and marine ecosystems, cultural and human aspects; Dynamic Earth presents the earth’s movements earth-earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, floods, tsunamis, natural disasters and their mitigation; Diverse Earth explores the links between biodiversity and cultural diversity; Changing Earth sounds the alarm regarding human impact and its consequences. The exhibition finally highlights international initiatives geared towards Sustaining the Earth including the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, Man and the Biosphere Programme, and programmes concerning renewable energy, ethics and youth.

Scheduled side events include, a conference with Professor Jean Malaurie on the effects of climate change on indigenous peoples and a presentation of the French concept of ‘terroir’ as a model for sustainable development. Other events include a film on the role of remote sensing in monitoring changes World Heritage properties and a presentation by Brazilian photographer Sebastiao Salgado of GENESIS, a UNESCO-backed educational project to raise awareness among children of our magnificent planet.

The opening will take place at 6 p.m. on 16 October at UNESCO Headquarters (Hall Ségur).

The exhibition is not open to the public.

• Source:UNESCO Media Advisory No. 2007–67
• 15-10-2007