The SACS: “Eating the greens of geology” because somebody has to! - Penn-Clarke

19 June 2020 GSSA Lunchtime talk with Cameron Penn-Clarke:

The South African Committee for Stratigraphy: “Eating the greens of geology” because somebody has to!

The South African Committee for Stratigraphy (SACS), by mandate, serves a regulatory role that provides clear guidelines for the nomenclature and definition of lithostratigraphic and lithodemic rock units, as well as biostratigraphic units and soils which constitute the continental record of South Africa. SACS is an organisational member of the International Subcommission on Stratigraphic Classification (ISSC) and the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) and is perhaps one of the few remaining national stratigraphic commissions left globally! In order for SACS to achieve its mandate and research capacity, this is done through the South African Stratigraphic Code which itself, promotes standardised terminology, nomenclatural use and international best practices set forth in the International Stratigraphic Guide (ISG), itself a product of the ISSC and ICS. As unglamorous as it may seem, without stratigraphic frameworks, rules and regulations, communication of geology and ideas is impossible. This presentation serves as an introduction to SACS, the ISG, its committees (who tirelessly peck away at refining our continental stratigraphic record), activities and plans for growth and transformation to meet the future needs of South Africa.

Cameron Penn-Clarke is a graduate of the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg and holds B.Sc. (Geology and Zoology, 2010), B.Sc.Hons. (Geology and Palaeontology, 2011) and Ph.D. (Geosciences, 2017) degrees from his alma mater. He is employed as a scientist at the Council for Geoscience and is based in the Western Cape Regional Office (Bellville, CapeTown) and is an Honorary Research Associate of the Evolutionary Studies Institute (ESI: Wits). Previous to this post, he held post-doctoral research fellowships at Durham University (UK), Iziko Museums (Cape Town) and the ESI:Wits. Cameron is an academic geologist by passion and holds many research interests within the realm of sedimentology, stratigraphy and palaeontology. He is the incumbent acting National Secretary for the South African Committee for Stratigraphy (SACS) and is the South African representative for the Subcommission on Devonian Stratigraphy (International Commission on Stratigraphy) and is a participant in the UNESCO IGCP 652 project (Reading geologic time in Paleozoic sedimentary rocks). In these roles, he is variably helping guide, develop, and maintain stratigraphic research in South Africa as well as keeping it abreast with international best practices and developments.