The Conference will be a hallmark event that promises to set a benchmark for the tourism industry in relation to the development, management and marketing of geotourism. The conference will also examine many aspects of Geoheritage as well as discuss the growing Geoparks movement.

The program includes presentations from a range of outstanding keynote and invited speakers who are acknowledged leaders in their fields. They will be supported by papers, panel sessions, workshops and posters.

The Conference includes a half day field trip and also offers major pre and post conference field trips to various parts of our State. I encourage you to consider these as a fantastic way of experiencing the outback of this vast continent. The social program offers excellent opportunities for networking and to enjoy wonderful Western Australian food and wine.

The Conference host is the Forum Advocating Cultural and Eco Tourism (FACET). It is a network and information resource organisation for people with an interest in cultural and natural tourism. Formed in 1992, it hosts an annual conference which focuses on topics related to its charter. Here in this remote corner of the globe, we in Western Australia offer you our friendship and traditional 'west coast' warmth of hospitality.

Whilst here, we want you to have a first class experience and hope at the close of the Conference, you will return home with increased professional knowledge, new and enhanced friendships and a spirit of wanting to strive harder to make the world a better place in which to live and travel.

Finally, the Conference is about participation and I hope that all delegates take advantage of the opportunities to contribute to it throughout. I look forward to meeting you all personally and hope that it will enrich your life and be a prosperous and abundant experience for you. My aim is to host the event so that you will gain much from it for your professional development and future life.

See you in Western Australia in August.

Professor Ross Dowling
CONFERENCE CONVENOR
AND FACET CHAIRPERSON

The Earth's geological wonders have always fascinated people and are a fundamental part of a culture's identity. Many also form the basis for the establishment of protected areas and World Heritage Sites. From Iguazu Falls to the Grand Canyon, examples abound of outstanding geological features which have attracted visitors from time immemorial. It is not just spectacular landforms either, but also the processes which have shaped the Earth. So tourists also visit sites where glaciers are in action, volcanoes are active, sand dunes are sculpted and rivers are causing erosion. It is the understanding of this 'form - process relationship' that is important in geology and by extension, geotourism. Through geotourism the relationship is explored and the consequences of geological landforms and activities on our lives are more fully understood.