LivingGeography

East Enders

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sun, 07 Jun 2026 19:40:58 +0000

I've long taught about the impact of prevailing winds on the quality of housing and therefore the places where the rich or poor live, and the East End tending to be poorer than the West End... or the valley bottom locations compared to the upper areas e.g. Nob Hill in Boston, USA.

This Guardian piece explores the historical reasons for this.

Substack

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sun, 07 Jun 2026 16:35:07 +0000

Did you know there is a Substack to accompany this blog?

If you want to keep up with what is added to the blog - and that is a lot - I post daily really, and sometimes more than one post a day at the moment with so much happening,

RIP the CIA Factbook - all hail the GATW Factbook

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sun, 07 Jun 2026 16:13:48 +0000

The CIA Factbook: a gazetteer of facts about each country in the world, is no longer maintained or updated.

The redoubtable Richard Allaway has stepped into the void and created a website where you can still access key facts about countries. This is designed for IB students in particular, but would be useful for anyone.

Head for Richard's website on the link above.

Look for a section called 'The Shed'.

The Shed is where new ideas for alltheway.education get built and tested. Some are rough prototypes; the ones that work graduate into the main projects.

Pick a country to see lots of data about it.

You can also compare up to 6 countries on indicators which you choose.

If you try it and have feedback, get in touch with Richard, and the tool may well become a permanent part of the support that Richard gives to iGCSE and IB geography teachers.

World Cup Woes #3

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sun, 07 Jun 2026 16:11:01 +0000

The third in a series of posts as we head towards the FIFA Men's World Cup football tournament.

Expect a lot of retailers to try to leverage the World Cup for the sales of additional products including food, clothing, alcohol, flags etc etc. - most things can be given some sort of World Cup branding. Here's some cupcakes for example.

TV and electrical firms have been trying to get us to upgrade our TVs as usual. This sort of unnecessary consumption, and the e-waste that it will generate as a consequence is something that we investigate with our Year 8 students.

Please send me your most tenuous World-Cup-connected items.

Going to the matches in person?

MetLife Stadium hosts eight World Cup matches this summer, including the final on July 19, with more than a million fans expected to visit the stadium and surroundings.

MapMe have shared a free interactive stadium map which helps visitors plan ahead: preview views from each seating section, locate gates, concessions, restrooms, parking, and nearby transit before arriving at the venue.
Follow the link here.

It's the summer and in many of the locations where the matches are being played, the temperatures are going to be blazing hot.

There was a message from FIFA that fans would not be able to take their own drinks to the stadium for safety reasons... but could then buy a drink inside. The drinks of course will be sold at inflated prices.

They later posted another video saying what they meant was no hard bottles or drinks containers which could be missiles... although they then sell cans of beer apparently...

Given the temperatures, it could be a bit pricy with water at $9.00 a bottle.

Canada is already concerned about the potential financial deficit if the tournament is not a success but it has not invested as much in it as the USA.

Travelling to the matches is turning into something of a saga too. The Iraq team were delayed in border control for hours and their team photographer was denied entry.

Some Scottish fans had their visa applications rejected too.

UK citizens who want to go to the United States for up to 90 days without a visa need to apply to the country's Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).

But dozens of fans who filled out the form have said on social media that their application status had changed this week from "approved" to "travel not authorised".

Some have told BBC Scotland News they could lose out on thousands of pounds in travel costs due to the changes, with Scotland's first World Cup game kicking off in less than two weeks.

Some cities are pedestrianising city blocks for the duration of matches to keep visitors safe. There have been an unfortunately high number of examples of vehicles being deliberately driven at crowds at sporting and other events in recent years. The chances of some high-profile incident at some point during the tournament is high. Some cities have closed off large areas or made them car free. The stadiums are also a long way from the city centre in some cases due to the huge size of US cities, and the expectation that everyone will drive to them.

There are concerns over the condition of the pitches too and safety for the players.

The Norwegian team photo was making the news too - not everyone was in favour of linking the team to the Vikings... who weren't always welcome when they arrived in places.

Plenty more to come in future posts. This is a World Cup that will keep giving...

FT / RGS Essay Competition 2026

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sun, 07 Jun 2026 15:44:00 +0000

The FT Essay competition in association with the RGS has been launched. This year, the title is:

What factors drive migration, how are patterns shifting and what are the consequences?

Please include changes resulting from climatic factors and post-2020 geopolitics in your answer. Check the website for all the terms and conditions.

You can submit your essay at any time before the deadline. Search FT.com for the latest news to help with your essay. You can also use other sources.

What the judges are looking for

A clear essay or ArcGIS StoryMap that is well-evidenced and reaches a clear conclusion
Submissions that do not exceed 1,000 words (excluding the title and references) – submissions over 1,000 words will not be considered. The word count must be provided in the document.
Referenced sources of information and data, including the FT
Submissions which are the entrant’s own work and relevant to the question and guidance

You have until the 9th of November to submit your entry.

Goodways - a new travel option

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Fri, 05 Jun 2026 11:59:30 +0000

A new project from some of the team behind Slow Ways, and spearheaded once again by Dan Raven Ellison.

Goodways is a new app to make it easier for everyone to enjoy Good Ways for walking, running, cycling, wheeling, horse-riding, skating, swimming, paddling, pushchairs and wheelchairs – whatever your ability or interests.

Watch the video below and Dan will tell you more about the project, which is just getting started.

This early version of the website has been crowdfunded and now the team are looking for people to help build a community which will develop a non-profit app to share the goodways to get around communities across the country.

As the website says:

Want an app and community you can trust – one that makes it easier to find and enjoy the best routes, whatever your interests, abilities or needs?

So do we. Let’s team up and make it happen.

We’re for community and not for profit. Joining Good Ways is not the same as signing up to a corporate app. You’ll be making a social investment that has the potential to improve people’s lives.

In return for your support you’ll get great routes, influence and the perks below.

Connected to a charity, community group, council, school, library or other nonprofit? Find out about membership for nonprofits here.

Want to join as a member but can’t afford it? Apply for a year’s membership funded by another member of the Good Ways community. These memberships are limited and there is a waiting list.

This is your chance to get involved with this new community and ensure that people in your own local area are aware of some healthier and safer options for travelling around and spending time outside.

This could be a great opportunity for a geography department to take the lead in mapping routes in the school catchment area with the aid of pupils: those little alleys and paths which make travelling between places that much easier but which not everyone might know about.

Thoughtful Thursdays #28

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 15:11:00 +0000

Welcome to the 28th of my Thoughtful Thursdays.

What was I thinking about today?

This was another of those pottering days when I had some Zoom calls and was working on projects, some of which have yet to be confirmed - but I like to get ahead of myself where possible.

One thing I was thinking about was the Curriculum and Assessment Review.

Update

The latest language and updates from the DfE seem to suggest that the next stage of the CAR is being delayed until after the summer holidays.

On Friday, a Thank a teacher Day newsletter finished with this text:

The national curriculum and GCSEs are being updated for the first time in over a decade. A public consultation on the draft programmes of study and subject content for the first group of GCSEs will open this September. The revised curriculum will be published next Spring, with support to begin first teaching in September 2028. The first updated GCSEs will be taught from September 2029. The expertise, insight and experience of the education sector will be vital in shaping these reforms, and we look forward to working together throughout the process. More details on how to get involved will follow when the consultation launches.

We were expecting this to start in ‘Spring 2026’, which was the promised date. We were also promised ‘evolution not revolution’, which is surely a little easier than wholescale reform (which was my preferred option). That would have given some time over the summer to prepare the responses and also the support for teachers to be able to respond to the consultation. It seems we are going to have to wait for longer and also complete 2 consultations at the same time, rather than one leading in to the next. No comment.

World Cup Woes #2

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 12:31:07 +0000

The second of a series of posts as we head towards the FIFA Men's World Cup football tournament.

I have a Financial Times online account through school so am fortunate to be able to read their articles behind the paywall, although quite a few are made available for educational purposes. This one looks at the reduction in hotel prices that has taken place because of the lack of bookings at the original price.

Rising inflation means Americans are cautious about spending big. FIFA has also cancelled a lot of rooms it had originally reserve leaving hotels with unused capacity.

Thousands of tickets also apparently mysteriously disappeared from FIFA ticketing websites earlier in the week. There are lots of theories about why that might have happened.

There are also travel restrictions for people from outside of the USA, and a rise in anti-American sentiment (which is probably also anti-Trump sentiment).

There's also an issue with one of the venues at least... Guadalajara - as outlined in this FT piece.

There's also the issue of pricing appearing again with FIFA being summoned to explain why prices are so high.

Fifa takes a 15 per cent fee from both buyer and seller from each completed transaction on its marketplace.

Here's another change which has annoyed locals in Dallas. A mural has been painted over in the city apparently.

This piece by a former Mexican ambassador to the UN makes it very clear how the World Cup has also lost the original thinking of drawing the three host nations together and changing the world's view of North America.

If you want more details on any particular team, the Guardian Experts' Network has guides on all the teams taking part in the tournament, although some may be depleted as stories are already emerging of players whose visas to enter the USA have been refused.

There is also the coverage from Al Jazeera which offers a different perspective from the usual UK news networks and newspaper. This is the one I will refer to often instead of the BBC.

More to come... there's no shortage of future woes to emerge I'm sure...

Worldly Wednesdays #64: So many books, so little time...

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 15:39:00 +0000

Welcome to another Worldly Wednesday.

There are another five of these to go this academic year, and then it will be the long summer break when they stop for a couple of months. Today was another non-teaching Wednesday. I like these a lot.

I had a meeting with RGS colleagues this morning. There's lots to discuss at the moment. We are waiting for the draft curriculum for consultation which has been promised in Spring 2026. Also coming out in the next few weeks I believe are draft materials from Education Scotland as part of their Curriculum Improvement Cycle, and the Northern Ireland curriculum resources are also out imminently.

There will be a lot of attention on the new curriculum and its implications, and the RGS team and I are ready to support you through the next stage, to be ready for a smooth launch in 2028.

We are promised evolution rather than revolution, so let's see what emerges.

I published a bumper edition of the LivingGeography Substack: #74.

I also got stuck into reading the book here, and worked away on a whole series of other projects including new posts on the World of Music blog.

Rayburn Tours - nominated again

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 15:10:00 +0000

Rayburn Tours, who I work for as a Field Studies Tutor in Iceland have once again been nominated in the School Travel Awards and you can vote for those (and the others in the shortlisted categories, who include the Field Studies Council) in the UK School Travel Awards.

Rayburn were the winners last time round - can they make it two in a row.

Vote here before the end of July.

UK wildlife on British banknotes - vote for your favourites

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 15:03:17 +0000

A cross posting from my GCSE Natural History blog - almost 600 posts in preparation for the launch of the GCSE Natural History draft specification.

The shortlisted animals which may appear on bank notes from the Bank of England have been revealed.

The replacement of historical characters, particularly Sir Winston Churchill, with British wildlife sent political leaders into a frenzy of condemnation earlier this year.

But now people have a month to offer their views about which species of wildlife should be honoured on the £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes.

The shortlist, chosen by a panel of wildlife experts, excluded household pets. People will be able to vote for up to six of their favourites from the shortlist, external.

The mammals are: the bottlenose dolphin, the brown hare, the European hedgehog, the grey seal, the pine marten and the red fox.

The second category of birds feature: the Atlantic puffin, the barn owl, the common kingfisher, the Eurasian curlew, the great spotted woodpecker, and the white-tailed eagle.

The final section of amphibians, insects and fish, has: the Atlantic salmon, the basking shark, the buff-tailed bumblebee, the common frog, the Emperor dragonfly, and the marsh fritillary butterfly.

Vote here before the 3rd of July.

Top 50 staycations

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 11:32:15 +0000

According to Sykes Holiday Cottages and the Daily Mirror.

Fortunately, the places I'm staying this summer are not on the list - although some of them are fairly close - and a few are in Norfolk. I'll probably visit a handful of these over the summer.

New AQA resource in association with Discover the World Education

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 09:15:24 +0000

AQA has teamed up with Discover the World Education to produce a new resource.

The Bangladesh & Dhaka resource pack, developed with DTWE, is closely aligned to the AQA GCSE specification across both physical and human themes.

Dan Stacey, Discover the World Education Director, said: “Each resource has been designed to work effectively as a standalone classroom tool, while together they combine to create an invaluable and in-depth ‘mega case study’ that supports deeper geographical understanding and stronger curriculum connections. By combining contemporary case studies with robust curriculum support, the resource has been designed to help teachers deliver relevant, impactful and accessible geography education with confidence.”

The Bangladesh & Dhaka resource pack is structured in three parts, each focusing on a key aspect of the GCSE Geography course.

The first introduces Bangladesh as an in-depth country study, covering location, topography, climate, population and development indicators before focusing on Dhaka, where students explore the city’s economic and cultural importance.

The second resource focuses on Tropical Storm Amphan, examining a recent tropical cyclone through its causes, impacts and responses – supporting key themes around weather hazards and sustainable management in low-income countries (LICs) and newly emerging economies (NEEs).

The final resource in the pack explores urban issues and challenges through the example of Dhaka’s rapid growth. The case study links directly to GCSE topics on urbanisation.

Follow the link and provide a school email to receive a copy of the resource free of charge. It's an attractively designed piece of work.

World Cup Data report

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 11:54:35 +0000

Via this FT article.

The Bank of America report on the World Cup is mentioned. This isn't available to download at the time of posting. I think a lot of geographers would find it very interesting.

"The 2026 World Cup will be the most connected and data-intensive sporting event ever. AI, exascale computing, digital twins, data centres, robots and autonomous vehicles are just a few of the technologies converging together at this event. The final match could consume up to 7% of global internet traffic, as viewing shifts decisively from linear TV to streaming, mobile and social platforms. Digital engagement already rivals traditional broadcasting, turning more than 6 billion fans from passive viewers into real-time participants across multiple screens and platforms."

Sport as an economic superpower is also a feature of the report. Here's the most valuable players in the tournament...

Yahoo News has a similar feature on this report

FIFA has also completed its own socioeconomic analysis which can be downloaded as a PDF from here.

The headline figures from this are:

Among the key estimates, the FIFA World Cup 2026 analysis highlights that across the host countries 6.5 million people are expected to attend the tournament. According to OE, the tournament could help drive up to USD 40.9 billion in Gross Domestic Product (GDP), deliver USD 8.28 billion in social benefits and underpin the creation of nearly 824,000 full time equivalent (FTE) jobs globally. Specifically for the US, OE estimates that 185,000 FTE jobs could be created, with 30.5 billion in gross output and USD 17.2 billion in GDP.

UN CC Learn Courses

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sun, 31 May 2026 13:27:15 +0000

A few years back now, I completed the training to be named as a UN accredited Climate Change teacher through the CC Learn project. It took a long time and was a challenging course to complete. I wear my badge on my work suit.

The UN CC Learn page now has some new courses for teachers to complete on a range of topics. Why not check them out?

EMO-GI #16: UNEP AI tool

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sun, 31 May 2026 13:25:31 +0000

Via LinkedIn.

I saw this new resource which had been created and shared by UNEP.

EnvironmentGPT is a public beta chatbot that helps you access resources in the field of environmental sciences. It references peer-reviewed UNEP-approved sources only.

I gave it a go, and here are the responses I received.

My question:

A response:

And the sources used in the response from the approved list of UNEP sources:

It then turns out there are other options based on what people wrote in the comments on the original post.

There's also GreenPT.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.

Storytelling and Barry Lopez

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sat, 30 May 2026 14:08:13 +0000

"One of the reasons we're lonely is that we've cut ourselves off from the nonhuman world and have called this 'progress'."

Barry Lopez

A Barry Lopez article in 'Emergence' magazine is well worth reading - as is anything related to this author. (PDF download).

Image: Alan Parkinson - Nant Ffrancon Valley, Snowdonia

His writing is guided all the while by a belief, as Barry wrote in Horizon, “that the physical land … is sentient and responsive, as informed by its own memory as it is by the weather, and offering within the obvious, the tenuous.”

“My particular reason for writing is to provide illumination for a nation that is chronically, pathologically distracted,” he told me. He wasn’t interested in writing those everyday stories that entertain or make us laugh or create conviviality—what he called maintenance stories. Three-meals-a-day stories. They might fill the belly, but they don’t nourish. “The stories I’m trying to write, and which I want to promote, are stories that contribute to the stability of my own culture,” Barry told me, “stories that elevate, that keep things from flying apart.”

Source: https://medium.com/thewildones/barry-lopezs-advice-to-aspiring-nature-writers-93a122e5996d

And here's a talk that Barry gave on a similar theme.

Check out these articles too.

Stories create avenues for sharing the meanings and social implications of scientific knowledge. We explore their value when told between scientists during a volcanic eruption. They are important vehicles for understanding how risk is generated during volcanic eruptions and create new knowledge about these interactions. Stories explore how risk is negotiated when scientific information is ambiguous or uncertain, identify cause and effect, and rationalise the emotional intensity of a crisis.

Source: Barclay, J., Robertson, R., and Armijos, M. T.: Scientists as storytellers: the explanatory power of stories told about environmental crises, Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 3603–3615, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-3603-2023, 2023.

Daniel Procter: Geography and History working together

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sat, 30 May 2026 14:01:11 +0000

Thanks to David Preece for the tip off here via LinkedIn. David Procter was sharing some of his work connecting historical and geographical thinking, with respect to the Lake District National Park.

A Padlet link here to their resources which are well worth taking a look at.

Relocating New Orleans

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sat, 30 May 2026 10:59:24 +0000

The Guardian suggests that the city of New Orleans needs to reconsider the sustainability of its location, as sea level rises.

Low-lying areas of the city were previously flooded during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

World Cup Woes #1

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Sat, 30 May 2026 09:46:47 +0000

For all football (soccer) players, to play in a World Cup is a highlight of their careers....

With around two weeks to go before it starts, and the free wall charts appearing in the weekend papers, here's the first of a few posts which will appear over the coming weeks.

In the past, Geography of Sport style units were more common - I had one as part of my KS3 for a while. My school was a Specialist Sports College, and when the funding came through I added a unit so that it would fund a new set of textbooks for me called 'Geography Matters'. You can still see some iterations of this on the archived GeographyPages website. Here's the 2006 version (with some later updates) for example, and the World Cup 2006 ideas.

I wonder what this year's FIFA World Cup will be remembered for?

Will it be remembered for the actions of the 'main' hosts in terms of the numbers of games that will take place in that country?

When the bid was initially approved, the idea was that matches would be played in the USA, Canada and Mexico. The phrasing used was a 'United World Cup'.

That has all fallen apart with Trump insulting both the Canadians and the Mexicans.

Will it be remembered for the ridiculous spectacle of FIFA awarding Trump a 'Peace' prize at the draw... just before he started a war with Iran which didn't need to happen and interfering in other country's governance, and much much more....

Then there was the suggestion that a team that had qualified for the tournament: Iran, should be replaced by one that hadn't: Italy, on the basis that they had won the tournament previously and the USA was recently threatening to "end their civilisation" and bomb them into oblivion.... it seems they may be based in Mexico rather than the USA.

Pubs in the UK will probably stay open longer during the tournament because of the timing of some of the matches. However, there was some suggestion that they may run out of beer because this requires carbon dioxide, the production of which is affected by the ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Watching the games in person means entering the USA, and this is not easy for many.

Will it be remembered for empty stadia?

Fans from some countries are on banned lists so can't visit to support their own team.

Others fear being detailed without any real cause or due process. Thousands of people have been detained for no good reason in huge detention centres - no due process seems to be taking place.

Given the actions of ICE and other Homeland security, US rights groups are warning about even travelling to the USA.

Then there is the price gouging which means it's ridiculously expensive compared with following the national team at previous tournaments.

A train from central Boston to the stadium was priced at $80 - for those looking to take an official bus, it was $95. This decision has already been rolled back on....
Car park spaces have been scaled back but those looking to drive were at one point going to be charged $175 to park a car apparently Let's see whether that ends up happening.

As a result of an outcry the fares were since reduced, although the trains would probably have been less busy than expected as people worked out other ways to get to the game.

Hotels are obviously affected too. Their expectations of high occupancy have not proved correct, and many are now slashing prices as the tournament gets ever closer. Meanwhile surge pricing on tickets is making those even more expensive, so we'll see how full the stadiums are on the day.

Ticket prices have been in the news. Scotland fans, who've been waiting for years for their team to qualify have not been impressed with how much it will cost them to follow their team. So much for the people's game.

There are also lots of things that FIFA does which makes following the tournament on TV as much as in person morally questionable.

And the stadiums are not in the middle of cities. Elland Road sits amongst terraced houses in an area of Leeds. I used to be a visitor for quite a few years during the Revie era. American stadia require transport to get there.

Then there's the usual safety aspect. USA clearly has huge problems with gun violence, but there were also shootings in Mexico recently.

Which countries have qualified? Mappr have provided a useful map which gives the answer, and the geographical spread of qualifying nations.

The increased number of teams playing in the tournament has already affected the price of the Panini sticker album which I've previously blogged about.

David Storey has shared a number of useful links on his BlueSky account.

More to come in future posts between now and the end of July when the final takes place. If you spot a relevant World Cup story let me know...

1953 - Everest conquered

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Fri, 29 May 2026 13:30:09 +0000

Some fine work by Brendan Conway.

Click the arrow at the bottom to move through the route taken by Hillary and Tenzing.

Commemorating the first ascent, 73 years ago today.

The RGS supported the earlier 1924 expedition where Mallory and Irvine disappeared.

At the RGS in the Education / Summit room there is a model which was used to plan the ascent of Everest. This 10-inch-to-the-mile scale model of Everest was originally built in 1952 by Cockade Limited, Model makers, Craftsmen and Designers, with assistance from mountaineer Eric Shipton and the Royal Geographical Society.

The RGS also sells platinum prints of Everest expeditions.

The RGS has created a range of education materials linked to Everest.

DG Outtake #9: Mukuru Clean Stoves

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Thu, 28 May 2026 15:54:41 +0000

This is one of a series of blog posts linked to the research I did for the 'Discover Geography' series, and mentioning some of the reading I did to prepare some of the chapters.

Not all of this material made it into the final book so I'm sharing it in these posts.

I was very pleased to get a mention for Mukuru Clean Stoves into the Discover Geography book. It's part of the chapter in the Year 8 book on everyday life.

Mukuru Stoves is a company that is based in Ghana and is an excellent story of African innovation. It was founded by a woman called Charlot Magayi.

This is an inspiring story of resilience and perseverence.

This Conversation piece talks about the lack of clean fuels for the clean energy transition.

The stoves were one of the winners of the Earthshot Prize in 2022. This gave her £1 million to help the next stage of her business' development.

I have been using these stoves as an example of hopeful geographies. One woman has changed the lives of millions already through the sales of her stoves as well as the jobs created in manufacturing and selling the stoves and their fuel, which is made from agricultural waste in one of the designs.

Check out the website and the story.

Here's a worksheet that I used with Year 8 to help them interrogate the story.

Mukuru Clean Stoves by Alan Parkinson

Watch the video here too:

I also have a copy of 'Wired' magazine which featured Charlot on the cover along with an article. This is a lovely new addition to our Year 8 curriculum.

EMO-GI #15: GeoDemAI Guidelines for AI use

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Thu, 28 May 2026 15:45:45 +0000

I have added a mention to some previous work that I completed in the area of AI into a report I'm drafting at the moment for the EMO-GI project.

GeoDemAI Guidelines by Alan Parkinson

Rayburn Tours Fieldwork blog

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Thu, 28 May 2026 15:33:39 +0000

I contributed a little bit to a recent Rayburn Tours blog post on fieldwork.

I work for Rayburn Tours as a Field Studies Tutor in Iceland currently. It's great to get the chance to head out there and work with schools to ensure they have the best possible time.

I, Pencil

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Parkinson) — Thu, 28 May 2026 14:43:32 +0000

A 1958 essay by the economist Leonard Read reminds us of the story of a simple product, and how there are many stages to the manufacture of even simple products. The hidden complexities of everyday geography are part of the economy... and also geography.

The essay is animated below: