CCOP

As an endorsing partner, we are delighted to support GEOMIN, which will take place this September in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. We also sincerely encourage colleagues and professionals from the Member Countries’ geoscience community to take part in this exciting event.

GEOMIN is far more than a conference, it is an international platform that brings together leaders and experts from geoscience, mining, and innovation to exchange knowledge, build connections, and advance AI-powered exploration and data-driven discovery across the Super Region.

Abstract submissions are now open until 11 May 2026:

GEOMIN 2026 | Mineral Exploration & Mining Conference | Uzbekistan Building on the landmark success of GEOMIN 2025 in Saudi Arabia, GEOMIN 2026 moves to Uzbekistan, strategically positioned at the crossroads of Central Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.

As the Supporting Organization, we are pleased to share the 38th International Geological Congress, which will be held in Calgary, Canada from 12-20 August 2028, inspired by the theme Geosciences for Humanity.

Detailed information about IGC 2028 can be found in the First Circular (https://www.igc2028canada.org/igc-2028-circulars).

Important Dates:

Session Proposals
March 2026 – March 2027

Abstract Submission
June 2027 – March 2028

Online Registration
June 2027 – June 2028

For more information, please visit our website (https://www.igc2028canada.org/).

Facebook 2028 Canada
Instagram
LinkedIn
BlueSky .bsky.social

On 7-9 April 2026, the 86th CCOP Steering Committee Meeting was held in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam, which was attended by 50 delegates from 13 Member Countries. Dr. Philipp Schmidt-Thome, Chairperson of the CCOP Advisory Group and Mr. Marcus Dobbs, Vice-Chairperson of the CCOP Advisory Group respectively, were also present.

Haji Shaharuddin Khairul bin Haji Anuar, Deputy Permanent Secretary (Infrastructure, Housing and Professional), Ministry of Development, Brunei Darussalam, and Ir. Norazmi bin Othman, Permanent Representative of Brunei Darussalam to CCOP and Acting Director General, Public Works Department, Ministry of Development, Brunei Darussalam, delivered the welcome address. Dr. Shinsuke Nakao, Chairperson of the CCOP Steering Committee, Permanent Representative of Japan to CCOP, and Director General of the Geological Survey of Japan, AIST, delivered the opening address.

The Meeting reviewed the CCOP Progress Report 2025, and approved the CCOP Workplan 2026, and the CCOP Finance Report. The arrangements for hosting the CCOP Annual Sessions and Steering Committee Meetings for the period 2026–2028 was also discussed.

In addition, the Meeting was briefed on the amendments to the CCOP Procedures, as well as cooperation proposals with Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) and International Geological Congress (IGC) 2028. The proposal to admit Deep-time Digital Earth (DDE) as a CCOP Cooperating Organization was also approved.

3rd International GeoAI Data Symposium 2026 & 3rd Workshop of Natural Hazard Prediction using Big Data and Machine Learning

In collaboration with the GeoAI Geological Data Society, the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), and the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR), Thailand, the 3rd International GeoAI Data Workshop and the 3rd Workshop on Natural Hazard Prediction using Big Data and Machine Learning were held on 23-25 March 2026, in Bangkok, Thailand. A total of 40 participants from 6 CCOP Member Countries attended the workshop, sharing the experience of utilizing artificial intelligence in geoscience, particularly in earth-related disciplines that deal with complex natural phenomena.

During the Opening Ceremony, Dr. Saro Lee, President of GeoAI Society of Geology, Principal Researcher, Geoscience Platform Research Division, Geoscience Data Center, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), delivered the Opening Remarks. Mr. Suvapak Imsamut, First Deputy Permanent Representative of Thailand to CCOP and Deputy Director-General of the Department of Mineral Resources, Thailand and Mr. Yongzheng Ma, Director of the CCOP Technical Secretariat delivered the Welcoming Address.

On 23 March 2026, two special Sessions with 14 speakers on the topics “GeoAI Satellite Applications for Environment and Disaster Monitoring” were organized.

On 24 March 2026, the 3rd Workshop on Natural Hazard Prediction using Big Data and Machine Learning was held, with 30 participants from Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and the CCOP Technical Secretariat. This is under the CCOP-KIGAM 5-year project on natural hazard prediction using big data and machine learning, which started in 2024 and is now in its third year. The symposium and workshop provided an important forum for reporting project progress, exchanging technical knowledge, and strengthening collaboration among participating organizations.

In the Session of Country Reports, representatives from Member Countries presented how they have applied the GeoAI methodology learned from this project in their respective organizations and countries. Dr. Saro Lee, the project leader, had updated on the visited the participating countries for training, and applied the GeoAI methodology for another case study area.

For more information, please visit https://ccop.asia/news/333

CCOP-GSJ Groundwater Project Phase V Kick-off Meeting (GW-14) and 10th GSI International Workshop

The CCOP-GSJ Groundwater Project Phase V Kick-off Meeting (GW-14) and the 10th International Workshop of the Geoinformation Sharing Infrastructure in East and Southeast Asia (GSi) were jointly held on 17-19 March 2026 in Bangkok, Thailand. It was attended by 43 participants from Brunei Darussalam, China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. OYO Corporation from Japan attended as the Observer.

Mr. Parinya Khumsraprom, Deputy Director General of the Department of Groundwater Resources, Thailand (DGR) and Mr. Yongzheng Ma, CCOPTS Director, welcomed all the participants to the meeting. Dr. Shinsuke Nakao, Chairperson of CCOP Steering Committee, Permanent Representative of Japan to CCOP, Director-General of Geological Survey of Japan, AIST, officially opened the meeting.

The CCOP-GSJ Groundwater Project Phase IV was kicked off in 2019 and concluded in 2024. All the annual meeting reports have been published as well as the electronic version, which have been made available at the GSJ website, https://www.gsj.jp/en/publications/ccop-gsj/index.html, and at the CCOP website, https://ccop.asia/e-library. During Phase IV, the project updated, expanded, and improved the CCOP Groundwater Database, made accessible via the GSi Web System, https://ccop-gsi.org/gsi/groundwater/index.php.
Dr. Shinji Matsumoto, the GSJ Groundwater Project Phase V Leader, presented the achievements of the previous four Phases, particularly emphasizing that water resources should be managed from the perspective of regional groundwater basins shared among countries, instead of being governed solely within national boundaries. Twelve (12) country reports on “Impact of Extreme Weather on Groundwater and Surface Water Resources: Current Challenges, Policy and Research Trends” were presented and discussed actively.

Dr. Shinji Takarada, CCOP-GSJ GSi Project Leader, presented the progress of the project. To date, a total of 4,600 map layers are available on the GSi Web System, with 3,654 visible to all users.

Dr. Joel Bandibas, the GSi System Developer, presented the system’s updates and new features, focusing on the following Web Processing Services available in GSi. Country reports of Brunei Darussalam, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam were presented. This includes progress of data upload and country portal sites, requests and suggestions for GSi system improvements and recent geoinformation developments in each country.

Dr. Joel Bandibas, the GSi System developer from the Geological Survey of Japan, led the joint workshop on Groundwater Database Compilation using CCOP GSi System which included training of the usage of the system. Hands-on exercises in uploading groundwater well data to the GSi system were also conducted.

During the two workshops, there is an exhibition from OYO Corporation Co. Ltd from Japan about monitoring water, survey, design, and measurement services for disaster-resistant infrastructure development.

For more information, please visit https://ccop.asia/news/332

UK Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre- Showcase 2026

Join BGS scientists from the UK Critical Mineral Intelligence Centre (CMIC) on the 31 March for a special live-streamed showcase of major research outputs from the last year.

Dr Gavin Mudd, Dr Pierre Josso, Dr Holly Elliott and Dr Joanna Wragg will be presenting on:

📈 - copper waste and scrap flows for the UK
🖥️ - the future of digital
💎 - the methodological progress on criticality assessments.

The presentations will be followed by a question-and-answer session with the panel.

For more information and to reserve your place, please visit:

UK Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre - 2026 Showcase A special online event, highlighting the latest research in criticality assessments, supply chains and the future of digital.

EuroGeoSurvey Geoheritage Online Lecture:

Safeguarding Geoheritage: Best Practices from Protected Areas

🗓️ Wednesday, 18 March 2026
🕒 16:00–17:30 CET

Geoheritage is a non-renewable natural resource, and its protection is essential for science, education, and sustainable development. This session will explore how protected areas, including UNESCO Global Geoparks, support geoconservation through practical management approaches and examples from Europe.

On the agenda:
🔹 Introduction | Kirstin Lemon (British Geological Survey, Northern Ireland), Chair of the Geoheritage Expert Group
🔹 Management of geoheritage in protected areas | Enrique Diaz-Martinez (Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, Spain)
🔹 UNESCO Global Geoparks and protected areas: examples from the UK | Kirstin Lemon (BGS, Northern Ireland)
🔹 Protected areas and geoconservation in Slovenia | Matevž Novak (GeoZS - Geological Survey of Slovenia)
🔹 Q&A

🔗 More information and link to join:

Online Lecture: Safeguarding Geoheritage: Best Practices from Protected Areas - EuroGeoSurveys EuroGeoSurveys Online Lecture: Safeguarding Geoheritage: Best Practices from Protected Areas

CCOP Technical Secretariat attended the 15th Joint Working Groups Meeting of the ASEAN Minerals Cooperation (JWG), which was held from 9 to 13 February 2026, in the ASEAN Headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The meeting was also attended by representatives from ASEAN member states, the ASEAN Secretariat and dialogue partners, including the U.S., ADB, ESCAP, ERIA, IGF, SEforALL, and the World Bank.

On 11 February 2026, Mr. Yongzheng Ma, Director of the CCOP Technical Secretariat, presented the cooperation progress on the ASEAN-Korea Cooperation Fund (AKCF) Project and potential collaboration with ASEAN Member States (AMS), and listened to the feedback from the AMS on their priorities and to understand specific alignment with the ASEAN Minerals Cooperation Action Plan IV (AMCAP-IV) and ASEAN Minerals Development Vision (AMDV).

On 12 February 2026, in the Twenty-Eighth Meeting of the Working Group on Minerals Information and Database (28th WGMID), Ms. Marivic Pulvera Uzarraga, CCOPTS Manager of Project Operation & Information, presented a brief on the progress of the AKCF Project on Critical Minerals Management and Strategy for Sustainable Environment in ASEAN, on updating the ASEAN Critical Minerals Data Platform (ACMDP) and the availability of data on the platform.

https://ccop.asia/news/331

On 5-6 February 2026, the 6th IGTL Geoscience International Conference 2026 was organized by the Institute of Geoscience of Timor-Leste (IGTL) in Dili, Timor-Leste.

The opening was attended by the H.E Mr. Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, Prime Minister of Timor Leste and H.E. Mr. Francisco da Costa Monteiro, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources of Timor-Leste. The conference served as an important platform for the exchange of knowledge, the discussion of emerging scientific and technological trends, and the formulation of strategic approaches to the sustainable utilization of geoscientific resources among experts, researchers, industry practitioners, and policymakers from across a wide range of geoscience disciplines.

Mr. Yongzheng Ma, Director of the CCOP Technical Secretariat, was invited to deliver a keynote presentation titled “Regional Cooperation in Geoscience: Strengthening National Capacity through Data, Standards, and Partnerships”. In the presentation, Mr. Ma highlighted the CCOP’s achievements in regional and international cooperation as well as the role of promoting sustainable development of geoscience in the East and Southeast Asia.

On 6 February 2026, Dr. Songyang Wu, Regional Expert of the CCOP Technical Secretariat, joined the panel discussion with a theme of Geoscience, Mineral Resources & Energy for Economic Growth. He shared views on how the National Geological Survey could contribute to the generation of geoscience knowledge that supports national strategies for mineral resource development. He also highlighted the importance of international cooperation and how CCOP’s regional cooperation with IGTL could accelerate the country’s capacity to generate reliable geoscience data and integrate it into sustainable development planning.

https://ccop.asia/news/330

On 23 January 2026, the CCOP Technical Secretariat, led by Director Mr. MA Yongzheng, took part in the celebration marking the 134th anniversary of the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR), Thailand and conveyed congratulations to Mr. Suvapak Imsamut, Deputy Director-General and Acting Major Somkid Kitueawiriya, Inspector.

Visit our website https://ccop.asia/news/329

CCOP Pays Courtesy Visit to DPIM Thailand to Strengthen AKCF Cooperation

On 9 January 2026, the CCOP Technical Secretariat (CCOPTS) paid a courtesy visit to the Department of Primary Industries and Mines (DPIM), Thailand. The visit marked an important step in strengthening institutional cooperation between CCOP and DPIM under the ASEAN–Korea Cooperation Fund (AKCF).

The courtesy visit was undertaken as the first official engagement between CCOPTS and DPIM since the assumption of office of the current CCOPTS Director, reflecting CCOP’s commitment to reinforcing partnerships with national agencies of Member Countries. The meeting also provided an opportunity for both sides to exchange views on ongoing and future collaboration in the field of geoscience and mineral resources.

During the visit, the CCOPTS delegation, led by Mr. Ma Yongzheng, the CCOPTS Director, held a meeting with the DPIM delegation, led by Dr. Aditad Vasinonta, Director-General. The discussion focused on strengthening cooperation between the two organizations, particularly in the areas of mineral resources development and regional capacity building.

As part of the meeting agenda, Dr. Tola SREU, AKCF Project Coordinator, delivered a presentation on the AKCF Project on Critical Minerals, outlining the project objectives, key activities, and Thailand’s participation in the project. The presentation highlighted the importance of field-based and hands-on training in enhancing technical capacity among ASEAN Member States.

In this context, CCOPTS formally requested DPIM’s support to co-organize the 2nd in-situ training in Thailand under the AKCF Project. The proposed collaboration aims to promote practical learning, strengthen technical exchange, and support sustainable mineral exploration and development in the region.

The DPIM delegation welcomed the CCOPTS visit and reaffirmed its willingness to continue supporting AKCF-related activities in line with Thailand’s mineral development priorities and regional cooperation objectives. Both sides expressed a shared commitment to advancing sustainable development, technical cooperation, and capacity building in geoscience across East and Southeast Asia.

The courtesy visit demonstrated CCOP’s continued mission to deepen partnerships with Member Country institutions and to advance the effective implementation of AKCF-supported activities through close regional collaboration.

Visit our website https://ccop.asia/news/328