Geograph - now available in Welsh

The Geograph project has appeared here numerous times over the years. It played a big part in my first trip up to the SAGT Conference.

When it was first launched, I publicised it over on GeographyPages and contributed some early images of the Norfolk area and bagged a few squares along the coast.


The Geograph Project Ltd is a small national charity – an online community and project that maps the British Isles with photographs and information, “to advance the education of the public in geography and heritage”. They have over 6 million moderated, geo-located and dated images on www,geograph.org.uk , made available through a Creative Commons Licence.

Many people use the website to learn about where they live or areas they might visit.
Don't forget that there is also a schools area providing some activities and games that can be played to explore the millions of images.

After a lot of hard work, the site has been translated into Welsh.

The Schools Area is also now available in Welsh.
Take a look if you haven't been before, or haven't been for a while.
The site is supported by the Ordnance Survey.

Geographical Association website now free access for the next three months

Work has been going on behind the scenes to make this happen for the last few days and earlier today the necessary changes to the website were made for open access to the GA website to be enabled.

There are numerous resources on here which non-members will not have been aware of.
The work that we did for the Action Plan for Geography had to be made freely available, but a great deal of extra resources are provided on the website behind the members' paywall.

I am very pleased to say that I had a part in quite a few of them during my time working for the Association, and before and since, including numerous resources, teacher support and CPD courses.

I am also currently working on some extra guidance for teachers and resources which I hope will be added to the site in time for the Summer term, when we shall still probably be locked down.

We're committed to geography education. With most children now being asked to stay at home, we have made all our teaching resources fully open access for the next three months. You don't need to be a member or log in 👉 https://t.co/VDU8nhSelR #geographyteacher pic.twitter.com/wniSV8CGqQ

— Geographical Assoc (@The_GA) March 24, 2020

Please consider joining the GA during the next six months or so. 

If you think, for example about the amount of photocopying, green pens and Pritt sticks youll save on that makes sense. Also think of your personal commuting costs, Costa coffees and other things you are going to be saving by working from home too.

Perhaps order something from the shop too. The new digital fieldwork series are available as instant downloads.

My new book Fieldwork book with John Widdowson was due to be available but that won't happen for a while now.

100 years of the Forestry Commission

Now called Forestry England...
A major agent of change in the British Landscape.

GA Presidents Blog

I have spent much of the last four days researching the 1920s and the history of the Geographical Association for the next phase in my major project around my GA Presidency: the creation of a biography of all the presidents since 1893, and associated events. I've also been contacting lots of former Presidents and finding out a whole range of stories and connections to

Check out the project here.

I'm currently in 1927, and the most recent President to be added was Charles Close, who was Director General of the Ordnance Survey.

Welsh Landscapes captured

An attempt to capture the changing landscape of Wales




Read more about the project here. (PDF download)

It is using a range of images and data sets to capture the landscape.

Show your Stripes

All landscapes will potentially be affected by Climate Change...

We have been using the warming stripes for some time in our department, and I also have a natty warming stripes tie. I shall be wearing it on Friday when we Show our Stripes

It's time to #ShowYourStripes by visiting: https://t.co/xZmp3uP2OQ!

We have made warming stripes graphics available for virtually every country, and including US states and UK regions. These are free to use however you like!

These are my #warmingstripes: England (1884-2018). pic.twitter.com/v5C6GD3koL

— Ed Hawkins (@ed_hawkins) June 17, 2019

Ed Hawkins is behind the stripes.
He has created a new website where you can download stripes for your own home region.

We will all be wearing the Stripes on the 21st of June. Posters are up in the Geography Classroom. Stickers are printed for everyone to wear.


Annual average temperatures for England from 1884-2018 using data from UK Met Office.

Graphics and lead scientist: Ed Hawkins, National Centre for Atmospheric Science, University of Reading.
Data : Berkeley Earth, NOAA, UK Met Office, MeteoSwiss, DWD.

75 000 page views

Good to see there's still interest in this blog, as it passes 75 000 page views.
The main blog is LIVING GEOGRAPHY, where there's plenty more on landscapes.