DR GIDEON GROENEWALD

Since 2001 Dr Gideon Groenewald, a South African geoconsultant, has been contractually appointed by the Peace Parks Foundation as facilitator in Lesotho for the Maloti-Drakensberg Transfrontier Conservation Development and related projects. He is mainly involved in developing responsible tourism in Lesotho and the border regions of South Africa.

Dr Groenewald has more than 27 years experience in geological mapping, groundwater-related projects and environmental education in the rural and farming regions of Southern Africa. He holds a PhD in Geology from the University of Port Elizabeth and is a member of the Geological Society and the Borehole Water Association of South Africa, as well as both the Palaeontological Association and the Grassland Society of Southern Africa.

As a self-employed geological consultant, Dr Groenewald's work includes groundwater-related projects, locating and mapping of quarries in dolerite and sandstone terrain for road building, locating and mapping of sand deposits for construction work, electronic database programme services, classification and mapping of geological formations in terms of structural stability for engineering projects, and the classification and mapping of soils for engineering projects. He has expert knowledge of the Upper Karoo Supergroup and dolerite formations, as well as the monitoring of drilling and logging of boreholes. In addition, he carries out environmental impact assessments (EIAs).

He has also been involved in environmental education and tourism initiatives. Not only has he organised field trips for learners and assisted in the filming of educational television programmes on interpretative geology, palaeontology and ecology, but he held the position of senior lecturer in Eco-tourism at the University of the North (Qwaqwa branch). He presents short training courses in tourism on contract in both South Africa and Lesotho and has led fossil hunting expeditions for the international and local tourist markets. He was also the co-leader of a field trip of the International Geological Conference, which was held in the Karoo in 1997.

His publications include 16 scientific and a large number of popular articles on geology, ecology and groundwater. Ten of his papers were read at international symposiums. He has participated in a wide range of television programmes produced for the SABC, M-Net and the BBC and is regularly invited to speak at public meetings and schools.