Geographical Commission for Westphalia

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The Geographical Commission for Westphalia (GeKo) is a scientific body of the Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (LWL) based in Münster . Alongside the literature commission for Westphalia , the antiquity commission for Westphalia , the historical commission for Westphalia , the commission for dialect and name research in Westphalia and the commission for everyday culture research for Westphalia, it is one of six scientific commissions for regional studies of the LWL.

With the help of its 112 volunteer members (as of 2019) from science and practice, the commission supports and promotes geographic and cultural research on geographic topics related to the Westphalia-Lippe region. These topics include national nature (soils, relief, climate), ecology, regenerative energies, settlement development, population structure, culture and education, economy, transport, tourism, administration and regional planning. The research results are published by the Geographical Commission for Westphalia u. a. in its own series, atlases and online articles.

history

The Geographical Commission for Westphalia was founded in 1936. It owes its existence to the Provincial Association of Westphalia , which initiated interdisciplinary cultural space research to develop an overall picture of Westphalia and supported it financially through staff and material resources. Today the Geographical Commission is financially supported by the Regional Association of Westphalia-Lippe, which has been the successor authority of the former Provincial Association since 1953.

structure

Organizationally, the Geographical Commission, like the other scientific commissions of the LWL, is assigned to the cultural department of the LWL.

The members take part in publications of the commission on a voluntary basis and meet once a year at an annual meeting. There new members are also elected by the commission. The aim is to achieve a balance between the regional and specialist topics. There are not only geographers among the members, but also representatives from the fields of botany, zoology, landscape ecology and regional, landscape, traffic and urban planning. Teachers and administrative staff also contribute their specialist knowledge of Westphalia.

The board of directors and the first chairman are also elected at the annual meeting. The incumbent cultural dean of the LWL is automatically a member of the board. The board advises the long-term research projects and the annual scientific work program. In the office, publications are prepared, conferences and excursions are organized, the website is updated, maps and graphics are created, data is collected, project ideas are developed and contacts are maintained. There are currently five permanent employees and one volunteer working for the commission in the office.

Chairperson

First chair since the founding of the commission:

Publications

Atlas of Westphalia

The first geographical and regional history atlas of Westphalia, published in 1985 with maps and texts, serves as a regional information source for citizens, science, administrations and planning authorities. He also particularly supports school lessons and home care. As a rule, a full-page main map is juxtaposed with several secondary maps as well as diagrams, profiles or photos that complement and deepen the subject matter of the main map. A factual commentary with illustrations, tables, overviews and bibliographical references appears for each double page in a separate text booklet or on the atlas page itself. Since 2017, the volumes have been published specifically on individual main topics and are no longer published as a comprehensive atlas work:

Volumes published so far (since 2017):

  1. Running waters in Westphalia (2017)
  2. Foundations in Westphalia (2018)
  3. Nature parks in Westphalia (in publication)
  4. Mineral oil industry and petrol stations in Westphalia (2019)
  5. Shipping canals in Westphalia (2019)
  6. Hydrocarbons in Münsterland (2019)

Cities and municipalities in Westphalia

In its “Cities and municipalities in Westphalia” series, the commission presents all the cities and municipalities in Westphalia, grouped according to administrative units (independent cities and districts). All contributions are supplemented by a large number of tables, graphics, aerial photographs, photos and thematic maps in various scales. The now 27 volumes in this series are aimed at a broad public.

Published so far (since 2017):

  1. The district of Unna (2017)
  2. The City of Lünen (2017)
  3. The city of Unna (2017)
  4. The City of Bergkamen (2018)
  5. The municipality of Bönen (2018)
  6. The city of Fröndenberg (Ruhr) (2018)
  7. The municipality of Holzwickede (2018)
  8. The City of Kamen (2018)
  9. The city of Schwerte (2018)
  10. The City of Helm (2018)
  11. The City of Werne (2018)
  12. The municipality of Beelen (2019)
  13. The city of Warendorf (2019)
  14. The city of Soest (presumably 2020)
  15. The city of Drensteinfurt (probably 2021)

Westphalia regional

The regional history online documentation Westfalen-Regional is the content and media continuation of the book version of Westfalen Regional published in early 2007, the second edition of which was published a short time later. The region is presented by the authors in short articles from a total of eight subject areas. The focus is not only on Westphalia as a whole, but also its sub-areas (e.g. Münsterland , Emscher-Lippe region), its cities and communities and, last but not least, its economic and cultural institutions (well-known companies, cultural institutions, etc.) whose fame and importance extends far beyond the borders of Westphalia. In addition, Westfalen Regional aims to use subject didactics in schools (focus: North Rhine-Westphalia). This applies in particular to geography lessons in secondary levels I and II, where, according to the curriculum, the study of the near or home area is an important focus.

Further publications by the Geographical Commission

Other publications include:

  1. WebGIS Westphalia
  2. Cultural Atlas of Westphalia
  3. Westphalian Geographical Studies
  4. Settlement and landscape in Westphalia
  5. Geko News
  6. Regional studies articles and reports

and various other works by the Geographical Commission.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ List of honorary members
  2. ↑ Westphalia-Regional
  3. ^ WebGIS Westphalia
  4. ↑ LWL culture atlas
  5. ^ LWL Westphalian Geographical Studies
  6. ^ LWL settlement and landscape in Westphalia
  7. ↑ Geko News
  8. ↑ Spieker
  9. ^ Work of the Geographical Commission