GEAS: Women who study the Earth

Prologue

“Geology is the science that explores the Earth, that digs up its insides to uncover the shakes and shifts that our planet has experienced through time. Since our origins, humans have felt attracted to the mysteries hidden by this squashed sphere, this blue dot in space. And although curiosity and talent transcend gender barriers, history has omitted without hesitation the contributions of remarkable women who not only faced the unknown but also stood up to the stereotypes and social conventions of their time. 

With GEAS: Women who study the Earth (‘Mujeres que estudian la Tierra’ in Spanish), we will travel through time to give voices to 12 women geologists of different times, historical contexts and nationalities, but all with something in common: they made an indelible mark on the strata of our knowledge. These twelve women challenged the society of their time to advance along the difficult and demanding path of science. We will start our journey with the misfortunes of Mary Anning during the dawn of the 19th century; we will witness the revolutionary advances made during the 20th century; and we will end floating in space hand in hand with Kathryn Dwyer during the 21st century. (…)

For our non-Spanish-speaking readers, the word GEAS may seem mysterious or meaningless. We use it as a symbol for all the women who have dedicated themselves to studying the Earth. It comes from the Greek γαια, which was romanised as Gaia and has subsequently evolved to become Gea in Spanish. It was the name of the primeval goddess who personifies the Earth in Greek mythology. In addition, in Spanish, we name professionals who are dedicated to geology in two different ways, according to whether they are men (geólogos) or women (geólogas). Thus, by abbreviating GEólogAS, we arrived at GEAS.”