Geopark Bergstrasse – Odenwald, Germany

The Global Geopark Bergstrasse-Odenwald is located in southwestern Germany and has a total area of 3,500 km². It became a member of the Global Geoparks Network in 2004. The geopark preserves a sequence of 500 million years of Earth’s history in central Europe. The region between Rhine, Main and Neckar records globally significant evidence of the Variscan orogeny, which illustrates the continental collision of the Oberrheingraben as part of a European-wide tectonic movement that formed the Alps valleys and the Rhine Graben. This region provides a unique window into Earth’s history and displays the dynamic processes of our planet. The typical rock formations, characteristic landscape morphology and agriculture have enabled the development of nature, settlements, agriculture, the economy and present-day life and thus directly connect nature, man and culture in the geopark.