The Nowdan anticline of the Zagros orogen as a geoheritage ‘window’ into the late Mesozoic– Cenozoic evolution of the African–Arabian continental margin

Geological heritage can contribute to our understanding of the long-term evolution of important sectors of our planet. Cretaceous–Neogene rocks (chiefly carbonates) crop out in the Nowdan anticline of the Zagros orogen. Field investigations have permitted the establishment of 10 key localities (stratigraphical reference sections) that represent these rocks within this anticline, which is a single large geosite. The formations are related to the main phases in the evolution of the northeastern sector of the African–Arabian continental margin. For instance, carbonate rocks of the Asmari Formation mark changes in the affinity of the study area, from the African–Arabian plate to only the Arabian plate, separated in conjunction with Red Sea rifting during the Oligocene. Information on the palaeogeographical changes is really precious to geoscientists and geotourists alike, and contributes to the great value of the Nowdan anticline geosite. Evidence from the latter, as well as from a few other places (i.e., the Mountainous Adygeya geodiversity hotspot in Russia, the North Coast of São Paulo in Brazil and the possible Gondwanan geopark in Namibia) illustrates the necessity of distinguishing a palaeomapping subtype in palaeogeographical characterisation of geological heritage

Lost in Missions? Employees as a Top Strategic Priority of the World’s Biggest Banks

Human resources are vitally important to banking. The mission statements of 50 banks with the biggest market value are analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively for subsequent judgments of consideration of employees among top strategic priorities of these organizations. The staff-related notions are found in the only 30% statements. Employees are considered in different aspects, and most frequently in regard to their work and duties. The top 10 banks pay attention to personnel development, career, and success. The findings of the present study indicate on the underrepresentation of the staff-related strategic priority in the mission statements of the world’s biggest banks. This seems to be a serious cavity in their strategic communication, dangerous to organization reputation and job satisfaction, and, thus, many actual mission statements need improvement

Scientific Utility of Selected Latin American Global Geoparks: A Literature-Based Case Study

Global geoparks, i.e., the members of the UNESCO Global Geopark (UGGp) network, possess highly valuable geoheritage resources, which can be used for the purposes of not only education and tourism, but also science. Five examples from four Latin American countries (Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, and Peru) were employed to realize the importance of these global geoparks as facilitators of international research. Journal articles devoted to these geoparks were selected with the major bibliographical databases, and the information from them was analyzed quantitatively. Particularly, the numbers of articles published before and after the UGGp membership, paying significant and marginal attention to geoparks, and published by international teams were calculated; the general themes of the articles were outlined. It was established that the total number of publications grew after the UGGp membership of these geoparks, but not steadily. The established dynamics of publishing are unstable and differ between the geoparks. Geoparks of Mexico (Mixteca Alta) and Peru (Colca y Volcanes de Andagua) are notable examples because they started to facilitate international research before the UGGp membership. Many articles consider geoparks only marginally (nonetheless, there are also articles paying significant attention to geoparks, especially in the cases of two Mexican geoparks). The author teams are often not restricted to Latin America. The research themes are rather diverse (geoheritage, geology, ecology, innovations, society, technology), although the majority of the publications are geoheritage-focused. Of special interest is the Colca y Volcanes de Andagua global geopark, which has been considered in the innovation-focused article. Generally, our results indicate a moderate importance of the considered global geoparks to international research activity and the incomplete exploitation of their scientific potential. Two Mexican geoparks (Comarca Minera and Mixteca Alta) seem to be the most successful in the facilitation of international research. Indeed, the scientific utility of global geoparks should be strengthened

Ordovician Tsunamis: Summary of Hypotheses and Implications for Geoheritage Resources

Ordovician tsunamis have been hypothesized for more than 25 years, but the related knowledge is yet to be systematized. The published sources bearing the pieces of this knowledge were collected in the course of the specialized bibliographical survey, and these pieces of evidence were summarized and interpreted with special attention to the spatiotemporal distribution of Ordovician tsunamis. It is found that the latter were reported from many places of the world (24 localities are established), which represent the Gondwana periphery, some isolated continental blocks, and terranes. Tsunamis were hypothesized for all epochs of the considered period, but the evidence is especially numerous for the Middle Ordovician. The degree of certainty of the interpretations of these tsunamis is chiefly moderate. It appears that only a tiny portion of Ordovician tsunamis is known, but the amount of available information is expected, taking into account the possibility of finding very ancient tsunamis. The outcomes of this study contribute to a better awareness of the world’s geoheritage resources. The established localities representing Ordovician tsunamis can be considered potential geosites, two of which are promising start points for further, field-based research

Real and Promoted Aesthetic Properties of Geosites: New Empirical Evidence from SW Russia

Aesthetic properties of natural heritage objects are determined by their physical properties. Online promotion of these objects to potential tourists requires adequate representation of these properties on web pages. The Shum waterfall is a small, but notable and tourism-important geosite of southwestern Russia. Its real aesthetic properties were examined in the field, and 20 web pages devoted to local tourism were examined to judge its promoted aesthetic properties. Eleven criteria of the common tourists’ judgments of beauty were used for this purpose. A significant discrepancy between the real and promoted properties is found. Particularly, the web pages exaggerate the scale of the waterfall and do not mention crowds of tourists. This may cause disappointment of the latter. The findings of the present study allow for making several practical recommendations for more efficient promotion of the Shum waterfall, as well as providing general advice to the geotourism industry

Real and Promoted Aesthetic Properties of Geosites: New Empirical Evidence from SW Russia

Aesthetic properties of natural heritage objects are determined by their physical properties. Online promotion of these objects to potential tourists requires adequate representation of these properties on web pages. The Shum waterfall is a small, but notable and tourism-important geosite of southwestern Russia. Its real aesthetic properties were examined in the field, and 20 web pages devoted to local tourism were examined to judge its promoted aesthetic properties. Eleven criteria of the common tourists’ judgments of beauty were used for this purpose. A significant discrepancy between the real and promoted properties is found. Particularly, the web pages exaggerate the scale of the waterfall and do not mention crowds of tourists. This may cause disappointment of the latter. The findings of the present study allow for making several practical recommendations for more efficient promotion of the Shum waterfall, as well as providing general advice to the geotourism industry

Lost in missions? Employees as a top strategic priority of the world's biggest banks

Human resources are vitally important to banking. The mission statements of 50 banks with the biggest market value are analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively for subsequent judgments of consideration of employees among top strategic priorities of these organizations. The staff-related notions are found in the only 30% statements. Employees are considered in different aspects, and most frequently in regard to their work and duties. The top 10 banks pay attention to personnel development, career, and success. The findings of the present study indicate on the underrepresentation of the staff-related strategic priority in the mission statements of the world's biggest banks. This seems to be a serious cavity in their strategic communication, dangerous to organization reputation and job satisfaction, and, thus, many actual mission statements need improvement

Geoheritage Value of Three Localities from Kislovodsk in the Southern Central Ciscaucasus: A Resource of Large Resort Area

Many geographical domains possess notable geological and geomorphological features, which are yet to be characterized comprehensively in terms of geoheritage. The present study focuses on the Kislovodsk area, which is situated in the southern part of the Central Ciscaucasus (post-Paleozoic platform), where the latter joins to the Greater Caucasus (late Cenozoic orogen). Three geosites are reported from there, and their qualitative description and semi-quantitative, score-based assessment are offered. The Honey Waterfalls represent an example of river erosion affecting Carboniferous granitoids with uppermost Jurassic weathering horizon and overlain by Lower Cretaceous carbonates. The Ring Mountain is a natural arch formed as result of wind erosion. The Little Saddle is a viewpoint offering a spectacular, panoramic view toward the Elbrus Mountain that is the highest peak of Russia and Europe and an impressive dormant stratovolcano. The Honey Waterfalls and the Ring Mountain are ranked nationally (the latter receives the highest total scores), and the Little Saddle is ranked regionally. These geosites are diverse in several aspects, and, particularly, different geoheritage types and forms are established. The Kislovodsk area bearing the reported geoheritage objects is a part of the Mineralnye Vody resort area, which is large and important for the national tourism and recreation industry. The related opportunities and challenges for geoheritage resource management have to be considered

Cultivating Patriotism—A Pioneering Note on a Russian Dimension of Corporate Ethics Management

Corporate codes of conduct address various issues, some of which can be country-specific. A tentative analysis of the content of 42 codes of the leading Russian private companies implies that about a quarter of them consider patriotism, which generally matches the significant attention paid to this issue in Russian society. Of 10 companies with the biggest annual revenue, four (40%) consider patriotism in their codes. The main topics are pride in a company’s relevance to state development, initiatives, and interests, as well as care for the veterans of the World War II. The present study implies that patriotism can be an important dimension of corporate ethics management in some countries

The Nowdan anticline of the Zagros orogen as a geoheritage ‘window’ into the late Mesozoic–Cenozoic evolution of the African–Arabian continental margin

Geological heritage can contribute to our understanding of the long-term evolution of important sectors of our planet. Cretaceous–Neogene rocks (chiefly carbonates) crop out in the Nowdan anticline of the Zagros orogen. Field investigations have permitted the establishment of 10 key localities (stratigraphical reference sections) that represent these rocks within this anticline, which is a single large geosite. The formations are related to the main phases in the evolution of the northeastern sector of the African–Arabian continental margin. For instance, carbonate rocks of the Asmari Formation mark changes in the affinity of the study area, from the African–Arabian plate to only the Arabian plate, separated in conjunction with Red Sea rifting during the Oligocene. Information on the palaeogeographical changes is really precious to geoscientists and geotourists alike, and contributes to the great value of the Nowdan anticline geosite. Evidence from the latter, as well as from a few other places (i.e., the Mountainous Adygeya geodiversity hotspot in Russia, the North Coast of São Paulo in Brazil and the possible Gondwanan geopark in Namibia) illustrates the necessity of distinguishing a palaeomapping subtype in palaeogeographical characterisation of geological heritage