This message was sent to ##Email## To advertise in this publication please click here January 6, 2021 Special Welcome Message from Scott Burns and Rafig Azzam, IAEG Prof. Rafig Azzam, President, IAEG Welcome to the 135th IAEG Connector, the electronic newsletter connecting environmental and engineering geologists around the world! Welcome to 2021! Mother Nature has affected the world with incredible power! Below we have summarized seven major landslides around the world with many having killed people in British Columbia (Canada), New Zealand, Philippines in a mine, Colombia, Peru and the incredible quick clay landslide outside of Oslo, Norway. The Gjerdrum landslide was the second quick clay landslide this year in Norway! Also, we had an incredible eruption of lava in Hawaii on Kilauea Volcano, and the Chinese brought moon rocks back to earth! As the world tries to deal with COVID-19, there are many changes in conferences. Three conferences have gone totally virtual (XIII ISL in Colombia in February, 2021; 10th Nepal Geological Congress in March, 2021; and the ARC13-2021 in November, 2021). The First IAEG South American Conference in Argentina has extended its abstract deadlines to March 5, 2021. The Euroengeo2020 in Athens has been moved again to October 2021. Also, our active YEG group has now produced five webinars that are now on YouTube, and the link is below. We also have links to two newsletters from sister societies: IUGS and IAP Geoethics. Enjoy the issue! Scott Burns, now Past President, IAEG, and editor, IAEG Connector, and Rafig Azzam, President, IAEG .IAEG NEWS ARC13 2021 goes virtual IAEG As previously announced, IAEG-ARC13 Organizing Committee continues to monitor evolving factors relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. The evolving situation continues to throw up new uncertainties. You must also be aware that even with vaccines, safety measures, and travel restrictions are likely to continue into 2021. We value the tremendous benefit of an in-person meeting, but due to the need to guarantee attendee safety, the logistics will be problematic. In order to avoid the late cancellation of an in-person meeting, the meeting will still go ahead but in an all virtual setting instead. We look forward to having you join us for this fully online event, and will be reaching out with complete details and the updated program shortly. Happy New Year 2021! READ MORE YEG-IAEG official YouTube channel introduced IAEG The YEG group has organized and recorded five series of webinars. Each webinar is comprised of two presentations, one from a more experienced engineering geologist and one from a younger professional. So, 10 presentations in total. You can access them here. Each month a new 2-hour presentation will be added from distinguished invited keynote speakers. Chile becomes newest national group to join IAEG! IAEG The IAEG Executive Committee has unanimously voted to accept Chile as the newest national group or IAEG! This decision will be officially ratified at the next IAEG Council meeting. Special thanks to Vice President for South America, Professor Jorge Bejerman of Argentina, who has been recruiting national groups in South America. More good news is that we are close to having another national group from Bolivia! Thank you Vice President Jorge too!!! Free lectures on large landslides from iRALL iRALL Look back the lectures here. You can also watch the lectures by scanning the QR code. Click here to view the lecturers and topics. For more information, please visit: SKLGP Website http://en.sklgp.cdut.edu.cn/ iRALL Website http://irall.sklgp.cdut.edu.cn/ Newest issue of the Bulletin is now released IAEG Click here to view the Bulletin. Abstract deadline extended to March 5, 2021, for the First IAEG South American Regional Conference (in Argentina, September, 2021) IAEG Euroengeo2021 in Athens, Greece, moved to October 7-10, 2021 IAEG As we have stated before, the main goal of the organizing committee of the European Regional IAEG conference is to host an event with physical presence and face to face fruitful discussions. Therefore, following the oncoming EU and Greek Ministry of Health recommendations regarding the organization of public events, we have decided to move the congress to mid fall, on October 7th to 10th, 2021. We are optimistic that during the next few months, the situation regarding the epidemic will have improved; therefore, this will be the final change of date. In the unlikely situation of more epidemic restrictions, the event will be organized virtually. We remain excited to host this event and to finally make an IAEG event after so many years in Europe. The new deadline for full paper and/or new abstract submissions is the 31st of March 2021. Please keep in mind that the latest information will always be available at www.euroengeo2020.org. READ MORE ARC13 call for abstracts IAEG The 13th Asian Regional Conference (ARC13) of the International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment (IAEG) is calling for abstract for both industry and academic presentation submissions. The conference theme is “Engineering Geology for Sustainable Resource and Infrastructure Development.” The conference will be in Singapore from November 15-19, 2021. We are seeking papers that will provoke debate, stimulate discussion, and offer new ideas, learning and the dissemination of research findings. Submissions from industry professionals are encouraged on current or future projects, methodologies and technologies. We are encouraging academic submissions based on research outcomes and developments. ARC13 organizers intend for ARC13 to adopt an in-person meeting format. However, this cannot be promised because attendee safety is top priority and in view of restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. If the situation does not improve, the meeting may take the form of online presentations. Once decided, an announcement will be made and the registration fees informed accordingly. READ MORE IAEG Newsletter Issue No. 3 IAEG Click here to view the most recent newsletter. .OTHER CONFERENCES MINEX 2020 Russia has successful hybrid meeting MINEX Russia 2020 At the beginning of this year, after all physical platforms have been shut down, we had to come up with ways of carrying on and putting together multilingual events online. This year only a few international mining events were organised at a physical location. One of them was MINEX Russia Forum which was held in October in Moscow. As many people could not attend the forum in person, we have developed a technology for organising conference sessions, exhibitions, and networking, in a hybrid format. This technology helped to connect people participating in the Forum in-person in Moscow and online from anywhere in the world. READ MORE 10th Nepal Geological Congress, March 7-8, 2021, goes virtual Nepal Geological Society Nepal Geological Society has decided to conduct 10th Nepal Geological Congress from March 7-8, 2021, to exchange experiences, knowledge and recent findings in the field of geosciences and its application among the geoscientists without borders. The Congress will be organized in Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal. Due to the worldwide spread of COVID-19, the organizing committee of 10th Nepal Geological Congress has decided to conduct the congress virtually in web based platform. We will continuously monitor the situation, and inform about the possibility of physical presence of the domestic participants if they want. READ MORE 1st IAEG South American Regional Conference in Córdoba, Argentina, Sept. 6-10, 2021 IAEG The 1st IAEG South American Regional Conference will take place in the city of Córdoba in coincidence with the 2nd Argentine Congress of Geology Applied to Engineering and the Environment. The event will take place Sept. 6-10, 2021, within the Córdoba Regional Faculty of the National Technological University. The activity marks the return of IAEG to the region after 35 years, so we trust that the initiative will be a pleasant moment for its participants, involving the scientific and professional community of the region. Click here to view more details on the English website. Click here to view more details on the Spanish website. READ MORE .LINKS TO NEWSLETTERS OF OUR SISTER SOCIETIES 'Sister Society' Newsletter Links IGS (Geosynthetics) ISSMGE (ISSMGE News & Information Circular) IUGS E-Bulletin #172 IAPG - Geoethics .GEOLOGY NEWS Taku River: Another very large landslide in British Columbia, Canada The Landslide Blog Loyal reader Hig has alerted me to two postings on Facebook by Daryl Keith Tate, who has identified another very large and very dramatic landslide in British Columbia, Canada. His two Facebook posts include a set of images of the landslide source and debris and several videos of the aftermath. READ MORE Mount Silberhorn — a large rockslide in New Zealand The Landslide Blog On Dec. 31, pilots from Mount Cook Ski Planes & Helicopters in New Zealand noted the aftermath of a large rockslide from Mount Silberhorn in New Zealand. Mount Silberhorn, with an elevation of 3303 meters, is the fifth highest peak in New Zealand. READ MORE Gjerdrum: A quick clay landslide disaster in Norway The Landslide Blog Overnight, a large quick clay landslide has struck the village of Ask in the municipality of Gjerdurm in Norway. News reports from this landslide are a little confused, but it is clear that the slide has swept away a number of houses. Related: The scale of the Gjerdrum landslide: A helicopter video (The Landslide Blog) Norway landslide: Houses buried in Gjerdrum village near Oslo (BBC News) READ MORE The Carmen Copper Mine landslide in the Philippines — the slope evolution before failure The Landslide Blog It is now clear that the ongoing post-landslide operation at the site of the Carmen Copper Mine landslide in the Philippines has transitioned from a rescue to a recovery operation. The loss of the workers feels both tragic and unnecessary; questions need to be asked as to how such a tragedy can occur in a large, apparently well-managed mine. READ MORE Arequipa, Peru: Landslides from a M=5.6 earthquake on Dec. 16 The Landslide Blog The city of Arequipa in Peru was struck by a M=5.6 earthquake at 17:48 UT on 16 December 2020. This was a comparatively deep earthquake (87 km according to the USGS) in an area with a history of significant seismicity. READ MORE Bute Inlet: A very long runout proglacial landslide in Canada The Landslide Blog News has emerged of a recent very large landslide close to Bute Inlet in British Columbia in Canada. This landslide has been reported as a variety of phenomenon including a glacial lake outburst flood and a tsunami. Related: Massive landslide on B.C.'s central coast created its own seismic event: geologist READ MORE New global characterization of landslide exposure Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences Landslides triggered by intense rainfall are hazards that impact people and infrastructure across the world, but comprehensively quantifying exposure to these hazards remains challenging. Unlike earthquakes or flooding, which cover large areas, landslides occur only in highly susceptible parts of a landscape affected by intense rainfall, which may not intersect human settlement or infrastructure. READ MORE Fatal landslide blocks road between Colombia's capital and Medellin Colombia Reports Two people were killed in a landslide that blocked the road between Colombia’s capital Bogota and the country’s second largest city, Medellin, Dec. 12. The landslide destroyed destroyed six homes that were built in the mountainous and high-risk area in the rural municipality of San Luis, killing one adult and a seven-year-old boy after weeks of heavy rainfall. READ MORE Science Headlines IAEG Check out what's going on in the world of geological science: Earthquake and lava eruption at Kilauea (USCGS) Chinese capsule returns to Earth carrying moon rocks (The Associated Press) Fog-filled glacial valleys (NASA Earth Observatory) .CALENDAR OF EVENTS Date Event Location Feb. 22-26, 2021 13 International Symposium on Landslides Virtual March 5-7, 2021 1st Geoengineering, Climate Change and Sustantinable Development Conference Bangladesh May 10-14, 2021 IFCEE Expo Dallas, Texas May 16-19, 2021 EuroGeo 7 Warsaw, Poland June 14-18, 2021 Cities on Volcanoes 11 Heraklion, Crete, Greece Aug. 16-21, 2021 36th IGC Delhi, India Sept. 6-10, 2021 1st IAEG South American Regional Conference Córdoba, Argentina Oct. 7-10, 2021 Euroengeo — 3rd European Regional Conference of IAEG Athens, Greece Oct. 17-20, 2021 International Conference on Scour and Erosion Arlington, Virginia Nov. 15-19, 2021 ARC 13 Singapore Sept. 14, 2022 FedIGS Chengdu, China Sept. 15-20, 2022 IAEG Congress Chengdu, China Sept. 18-22, 2022 12th International Conference on Geosynthetics Rome, Italy   IAEG Connector E-News Connect with IAEG Dennis Hall, Director of Publishing, MultiView, 469-420-2656 | Download media kit Katina Hernandez, Executive Editor, MultiView, 469-420-2675 | Contribute news International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment IAEG, c/o Dr. Scott Burns, Portland State University, PO Box 751   |  Portland, OR 97207  503-725-3389  |  Contact Us  |  www.iaeg.info Click here to unsubscribe.  Learn how to add us to your safe sender list so our emails get to your inbox. 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