Tim Butcher awarded the Society's Mungo Park medal

The RSGS was delighted to present Tim Butcher with the Mungo Park medal in recognition of his outstanding contributions to geographical knowledge through exploration and work of a practical nature of benefit to humanity in potentially hazardous physical and social environments.  Butcher received his award from Mike Robinson and Professor Roger Crofts following a fascinating talk about the subject of his new book, The Trigger, at Stirling University's Logie Lecture Theatre on Thursday 22nd May. 

First awarded to Captain Angus Buchanan in 1930 for his crossing of the Sahara, the Mungo Park medal has a rich history of being presented to some of Britain’s most highly regarded journalists, including Michael Buerk, Kate Adie and John Simpson.

On the award, Tim Butcher said "I am enormously proud to have joined the ranks of former medalists, not east Great Uncle Eric Shipton."  Eric Shipton received the Society's Livingstone Medal in 1951.

Tim Butcher

Tim Butcher worked for The Daily Telegraph between 1990 and 2009, holding a series of positions including leader writer, war correspondent, Africa Bureau Chief and Middle East Correspondent.   After being sent to cover Africa in 2000, he decided to recreate H.M. Stanley’s trans-Africa expedition solo. Four years later he travelled through the Democratic Republic of Congo overland in an assortment of vessels including a motorbike and a dugout canoe, an experience documented in his number 1 bestselling book Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart. 

Butcher's second major work, Chasing the Devil: The Search for Africa’s Fighting Spirit, describes a 350 mile trek through Sierra Leone and Liberia following a trail blazed by Graham Greene.  Tim travelled in these countries at difficult times and under constant threat, he even faced a personal death threat from Charles Taylor.

Mungo Park Medal

In his time at The Daily Telegraph, Butcher specialised in covering awkward places at the most difficult times: Kurdistan under attack in 1991 by Saddam Hussein, Sarajevo during the Bosnian War of the 1990s, the Allied attack on Iraq in 2003, Israel's 2006 clash with Hizbollah in southern Lebanon among other crises. His work has helped to shed lights on the real lives of the simple everyday people who live in war zones, and to expose the true stories of conflicts around the world.

His journeys to research his new book, The Trigger: The Assassin that Brought the World to War, took him back to Bosnia, where he had previously covered the War of the 1990s.  He followed in the footsteps of Gavrilo Princip, the young Serb who assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

Tim Butcher's latest book, The Trigger

Outdoor Learning Updates and Education Resources for Teachers

Updates from the partner organisations to Education Scotland's Outdoor Learning team.

Forestry Commission Scotland – Woodland Workout

Forestry Commission Scotland is encouraging young people to feel the benefit of the Commonwealth Games with a new Woodland Workout pack. Targeted at 3-14 year olds the pack promotes opportunities for quality, fun and safe physical activity in the outdoors and includes ideas for games, physical activities and staging ‘adapted’ Commonwealth sports in the woodlands. The pack, complete with teachers’ guide, encourages young people to have fun but to also be responsible for their well-being and consider risk. As well as considering potential hazards in their activity space and taking risks with solving problems, it also allows children the chance to learn how to manage ‘failure’ through reflecting on performance to set new challenges. The Woodland Workout, with Commonwealth Games supplement has been issued to schools across Scotland and is available to download

Youthlink – The Link Magazine

The latest edition of The Link Magazine focuses on outdoor learning and highlights the huge range of Outdoor Learning experiences being delivered across the youth sector. An online edition can be viewed here.

RSPB- Nature of Scotland Awards

The Nature of Scotland Awards are now open for entries. The Nature of Scotland Awards are designed to recognise and celebrate excellence, innovation and outstanding achievement in Scottish nature conservation.

The Youth & Education Award celebrates a school or youth group who can demonstrate how they have made a real difference to the conservation and sustainability of Scotland’s wildlife and habitats.

This could be through fundraising for a conservation-related project, a school grounds development, partnership working or best practice in hands-on delivery of learning for sustainability, connecting young people to the natural world.

Sustrans – Big Street Survey

We have developed a learning and teaching resource for P6-7 and S1-3 called The Big Street Survey. It is designed to get pupils thinking and learning about their local environments, how they make them feel and how they can go about developing a manifesto for changing their streets and making them healthier and safer places.  You can view the resources here.

The resource delivers various Health and Wellbeing outcomes, Social Studies, Expressive arts, literacy and numeracy Experiences and Outcomes..

The Royal Highland Education Trust / Glachbeg Croft Centre – Maths on the Farm Career Long Professional Learning

A  FREE training session to primary practitioners which will introduce a range of maths activities that can be carried out using the farm as a background and provide information on what is on offer locally to help support farm learning. This training will take place on 22nd May at Glachbeg Croft Centre, Munlochy.

Duke of Edinburgh Award – Flag a Munro Challenge

The Flag a Munro Challenge is being organised by the Duke of Edinburgh's Award and is open to those who have signed up to complete their DofE Award. From April to June 2014 participants are invited to ‘Flag a

Munro’ to celebrate the Commonwealth Games. The project aims to connect people with our mountain heritage, encourage physical activity and recognise the significance of Scotland’s landscape. Photos taken on each climb will be used to compile a collage, a lasting piece of artwork to share the legacy of the challenge. The collage will be displayed at a special art exhibition in Glasgow this summer. For more information including how to sign-up, visit the Flag a Munro blog.

The Octavia Hill Awards

This year, the Octavia Hill Awards are looking for heroes who have helped children and young adults connect with the outdoors and wildlife – passing on their own experience, enthusiasm and love of nature. As many studies have shown, such connections with nature (even, or especially, in towns and cities) are essential for our mental, physical and emotional wellbeing.

Nominate your wild hero - examples could include:

• A teacher who makes a special effort to inspire their pupils to love and understand nature through outdoor learning.
• An individual or organisation that has fought a campaign to save outdoor space to play in.
• A conservation volunteer who gives up free time to take children and parents on field trips.
• A national organisation that promotes the importance of children’s connection with nature.
• An individual who teaches children outdoor skills, such as foraging, den-building, camping and birdwatching.

The closing date for nominations is midnight 31 May. Further information can be accessed here or here
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The Great Trossachs Forest

The Great Trossachs Forest has developed Geography, Art & Design and Biology teaching resources. Each resource pack contains a series of fact sheets, short films to compliment the subjects and suggested activities for the classroom and as part of outdoor learning. All the written information is provided in either pdfs or editable word documents so they can be tailored to suit different needs and teaching styles. The resource pack also provides useful information about bringing a class to The Great Trossachs Forest along with contact information should ranger support be required during the visit. 

Click here to access the downloadable resources

Historiographer Royal awarded prestigious Geddes Environment Medal by RSGS

Profs Roger Crofts, T.C Smout and Iain Stewart

Professor Christopher Smout, Historiographer Royal in Scotland, has been awarded the Geddes Environmental Medal by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society.

The Geddes Environment Medal is named after Sir Patrick Geddes, an innovative town planner and early RSGS Council Member. Professor Smout has used Geddesian principles throughout his career. He has used maps, topographic views and photographs - tools promoted by Geddes, a visual thinker - to illustrate Scotland’s changing landscapes.

The medal was awarded to Professor Smout at a special ceremony in Perth Concert Hall on 24 March 2014. Professor Smout is pictured here (centre) with RSGS chairman Professor Roger Crofts (left) and RSGS president Professor Iain Stewart (left).

Professor Iain Stewart handed over the award In recognition of Professor Smout's contribution to environmental history and the great value of the inter-disciplinary nature of Professor Smout’s work.

His inter-disciplinary research and writings have been concerned with issues of conservation and sustainability. His recent publication 'The Firth of Forth' contextualises such matters using case studies of herring fishing, oyster beds, pollution, seals, seabirds and the Bass Rock from Mesolithic times - a historical study of ‘place, folk and work’ reminiscent of a Geddesian ‘Valley Section’.

Previous recipients of the Award include photographer and filmaker Yann Arthus-Bertrand, the crew of the Plastiki and the couple behind the Fife Diet, Mike and Karen Small.

Dr Catherine Delano-Smith Awarded with the Bartholomew Globe

We were delighted to award Dr Catherine Delano-Smith with our Bartholomew Globe award on Monday 24th March.

Dr Delano-Smith with RSGS President Professor Iain Stewart and the Bartholomew Globe

Dr Delano-Smith is a leading geographer and historian of cartography and has done a great deal over the course of more than thirty years to deepen and widen research in the history of cartography, within the UK and across the world, becoming a lynchpin of the cartography community.

She has been one of the foremost activists behind the resurgence of the critical history of cartography, not only in her own works which have been many and influential, but also in her organisation of meetings through The International Society for the History of the Map, in her support of a bespoke and well-respected lecture series and, vitally, in her role as the editor of Imago Mundi, the world’s leading journal for the history of cartography.

Ed Stafford Receives Mungo Park Award

The RSGS was delighted to award Ed Stafford with our Mungo Park Medal after his talk at Perth Concert Hall on Monday 24th March

RSGS President Prof. Iain Stewart and Mungo Park Medal Winner Ed Stafford FRSGS

Ed completed one of the world’s last great adventures when he walked the entire length of the South American river, probably the world’s longest river.
 

Ed Stafford’s journey down the Amazon River was an inspiring example of the sort of feats an individual can achieve when they really put their mind to it. 

Ed used his journey to inspire others by filming and blogging his two and a half year adventure, gaining followers worldwide, and forming the basis for a documentary series and book. He wanted to create an adventure that would excite people about the Amazon and to discover both its wonders and its problems. He had first gained expedition experience with Trekforce Expeditions and carried forward their slogan “adventure with a purpose” as his guiding principle.

However, Ed would insist that Walking the Amazon was a world-first expedition first and foremost, but that he hoped that an ecological message would spread in tandem. He was personally concerned with the issues surrounding deforestation in the Amazon, and hoped that by enthusing people about the Amazon they might start to share his concerns. The big aim of his adventure was to get people so involved with the Amazon that they would start to care about its future.

With this in mind, and in recognition of Ed’s outstanding contributions to geographical knowledge through exploration in potentially hazardous physical environment, RSGS President Professor Iain Stewart presented Ed Stafford with the RSGS's Mungo Park Medal and honorary fellowship of the Society.

The Mungo Park Medal has been awarded since 1930 in recognition of outstanding contributions to geographical knowledge through exploration in potentially hazardous physical and social environments. Previous recipients include Thor Heyerdahl, Freya Stark, Kate Adie and John Simpson.

Nominations are open for RSGS Medals!

The RSGS’s prestigious Medals and Awards allow us to recognise outstanding contributions to geographical exploration and learning.

We are now inviting nominations for the RSGS Medals 2014 from members. The categories are:

◦     Scottish Geographical Medal, the highest accolade, for conspicuous merit and a performance of world-wide repute.

◦     Coppock Research Medal, the highest research-specific award, for an outstanding contribution to geographical knowledge through research and publication.

◦     Livingstone Medal, for outstanding service of a humanitarian nature with a clear geographical dimension.

◦     Mungo Park Medal, for an outstanding contribution to geographical knowledge through exploration or adventure in potentially hazardous physical or social environments.

◦     Shackleton Medal, for leadership and citizenship in a geographical field.

◦     Geddes Environment Medal, for an outstanding contribution to conservation of the built or natural environment and the development of sustainability.

◦     Tivy Education Medal, for exemplary, outstanding and inspirational teaching, educational policy or work in formal and informal educational arenas.

◦     Bartholomew Globe, for excellence in the assembly, delivery or application of geographical information through cartography, GIS and related techniques.

◦     President’s Medal, to recognise achievement and celebrate the impact of geographers’ work on wider society.

◦     Newbigin Prize, for an outstanding contribution to the Society’s Journal or other publication.

 

The Livingstone Medal, awarded for humanitarian service.

To nominate someone for an award, please send details, including a brief explanation (up to 250 words) of why your nominee(s) should be considered, by email to enquiries@rsgs.org, or by post to RSGS HQ in Perth. Nominations should be marked for the attention of the Chief Executive, and should arrive by the end of February 2014.