Advance the science of geology

Visiting Geoscientist Program (VGP)

• 5 October – Ivan Olaya delivered the course called “Basin Modelling” at the University EAFIT, Medellin, Colombia. 16 students attended.
• Coordinators are working to formalize new VGs in Venezuela, Colombia and Mexico.
• Delegates from the region become members of the VG Program

Earth Science Week

Brazil

• 10 October - Curitiba, Brazil. Held a class for 35 children (age 8 to 10 years old) about “Environment and water resources” in the Public School São Luiz. *
• 16 October - Campinas, Brazil. Event in a school about “Earth evolution through paleontology” which included a talk and a practical activity for kids from 9 to 12 years. Coordinated by YP Chapter Brazil with the participation of 3 members of UNICAMP SC. 12 children and 2 educators attended.
• 17 October - Campinas, Brazil. Event in a school about “Natural Disasters” and “Geology and Natural Resources”. Each presentation included a talk and practical activities for High School teenagers from 2nd and 3rd grade (junior and senior grade equivalent). Coordinated by YP Chapter Brazil with the participation of 6 members of UNICAMP SC. Total of 210 students and 4 educators attended.
• 18 October - Campinas, Brazil. Event in a school about “Earth evolution through paleontology” which included a talk and a practical activity for kids from 9 to 12 years. Coordinated by YP Chapter Brazil with the participation of 3 members of UNICAMP SC. 13 children and 1 educator attended.
• 25 October - Curitiba, Brazil. Held a class for 40 children (age 8 to 10 years old) about “The Rock Cycle” in the Public School Heitor de Alencar Furtado. *
• 31 October - Curitiba, Brazil. Held a class for 30 children (age 8 to 10 years old) about “Environment, water, energetic resources” in the Public School Moradias do Ribeirão. *

* Activities developed in a partnership with SEG-Geophysics, SEG-Economic Geology Student Chapters and post-graduate program in Geology-UFPR for the “Scientist at School Project”, coordinated by the city hall.

Earth Science Week activities at the University of Pamplona in Colombia

Colombia

• 15-19 October - Cúcuta, Colombia. Held Earth Science Week with the following activities organized by UPAMPLONA Student Chapter:
  • “Geology Fair” at schools General Santander, Manuel Antonio Rueda, Maria Inmaculada and Maria Auxiliadora. Reached 260 high school students.
  • "Minerals in everyday life” course for 11th grade students (senior grade) at the schools General Santander, Manuel Antonio Rueda, Maria Inmaculada, Maria Auxiliadora and Mega Colegio la Frontera. 276 students participated.
  • “Geology to the park: Municipality of Pamplona". Reached 130 people from the municipality.

Mexico

• 25-26 October – Universum CU UNAM, Mexico City. Held a workshop for young people at the “Science and Humanities Fair” about the process of creation and extraction of oil and its uses. 240 people attended.

Peru

• 30 October - Faculty of Petroleum of the National University of Engineering (UNI), Lima, Peru. Held Earth Science Week activities with the topic “The hydrocarbons industry from the perspective of geology students". More than 80 people attended, including 4th and 5th grade high school students and teachers.

Trinidad & Tobago

• 5 October – Jason Kanhai and Faria Badhal presented the STEM Session “Earth Minerals at St. Anthony’s College, Trinidad”. 20 students attended.
• 13-19 October – Held Earth Science Week 2019 through daily Trivia challenges and seven (7) video interviews which highlighted this year’s theme “Geoscience is for everyone. Geoscience is for you”

Venezuela

• 23 October – Jhonny Casas delivered a talk about geology and petroleum geology to 48 fifth grade students and 3 teachers at Merici Academy in Caracas, Venezuela

Promote the use of technology

GTW Suriname 2019: Recent Discoveries and Exploration and Development Opportunities in the Guiana Basin

• Paramaribo, 5-7 November 2019
• Confirmed sponsorships from Staatsolie, Apache, Petronas, Kosmos, ExxonMobil, Seismic Company Services, Tullow, Equinor, Halliburton, Cairn Energy
• Finalizing program and promoting registration
• Session Themes:
  • Tectonostratigraphic Setting and Petroleum Systems of the Guiana Basin
  • Maximizing Resource Potential in Emerging Basins
  • Enhancing Exploration and Development through Integration and Data Management
  • Beyond Guiana: Emerging Plays, Prospects and Discoveries throughout the Caribbean and Atlantic Margin
  • Government-Industry-Community: Strategies for Emerging Hydrocarbon Economies

Geology and Hydrocarbon Potential of the Circum-Gulf of Mexico Pre-salt Section

• Mexico City, 4-6 February 2020
• Online registration launched
• Call for abstracts closed on 15 October
• Committee members working to finalize the technical program and publish on the event website

GTW Colombia 2019: Exploration and Development in Southern Caribbean Basins

• Barranquilla, 26-27 March 2020
• Forming organizing committee and finalizing venue
• Confirmed sponsorships from Shell and Noble Energy; confirming sponsorships from ANH and Ecopetrol
• Session Themes:
  • Tectonic Setting and Petroleum Systems
  • Recent Discoveries and New Plays
  • Enhanced Imaging and AVO/DHI
  • Risk Reduction and Drilling Optimization
  • Special Session: Potential for Development of Unconventional Resources in Colombia
  • Special Session: Government Strategies to Support Colombia’s Energy Sector

Energy Opportunities Conference, Exhibition and B2B Session

• Camino Real Polanco, Mexico City, 23-24 September 2020
• Conference Sessions:
  • Maximizing the Region’s Energy Matrix
  • Results from Recent Offshore Exploration Campaigns
  • Investment Outlook and Legal Framework for Energy Projects
  • Connecting Industry, Government and Regulators
  • Disruptive Technologies and their Impact on the Energy Sector
  • Sustainable Development and Social License to Operate
  • Reducing Risk and Optimizing Costs in the New Energy Era
• Other event features:
  • Country Snapshots: open acreage, licensing and bid rounds throughout the region
  • Business-to-business session: one-on-one meetings with current and future partners in private conference rooms
  • U-Pitch Technology Showcase: shark tank-style session connecting entrepreneurs with investors
  • 700 m2 exhibition featuring individual stands and country pavilions
• Promoted the conference with a dedicated stand at ICE Buenos Aires

Unconventional Resources Technology Conference (URTeC) Argentina

• Buenos Aires, November 2019
• AAPG meeting with SPE and SEG board members to discuss holding the first Unconventional Resources Technology conference in Latin America
• Talked with local stakeholders about the event and sent RFPs to venues in Buenos Aires

Serve AAPG members throughout the Region

Region website & social media as of 3 November 2019

• Facebook page has 1960 followers (increased 0.9%)
• Twitter account has 704 followers (increased 0.6%)
• LinkedIn account has 1458 followers (increased 4.8%)

Develop the next generation of geoscientists

Imperial Barrel Award (IBA)

Global registration for the IBA 2020 opened last 16 September and will be open until November 29. During October 7 teams registered and/or are in the process of registration for the IBA LACR 2020.

The following is the timeline of the IBA LACR 2020 Competition:

• Teams Registration: 16 September 2019 - 29 November 2019
• Dataset release: 10 January 2020
• Virtual Round (via WebEx): 06 March 2020
• Semifinal LACR (Location TBD): 17 April 2020
• Global Finals (Houston, TX): 06 June 2020

Student Chapters

September activities not previously reported

• 16 September - UWI, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, hosted the “Icebreaker Session 2019” in partnership with the Young Professionals Chapter, SPE SC and the GSTT as a welcome to the new 1st year students into the program. 37 people attended.
• 24 September- UFRJ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, SC members gave a presentation "Seismic characterization of the tectonostratigraphic evolution and petroleum system of the Bristol Bay basin, Alaska, USA (IBA 2019 Contest)". 20 students attended.
• 25-27 September - UNSAAC, Cusco, Peru, participated in the workshop "High Resolution Biostratigraphy HBR" by Dr. Enrique Gonzales Torres. 90 students attended.

October activities

• 30 September to 3 October - UNICAMP, Campinas, Brazil, participated in the "XII Unicamp Petroleum Workshop" held by SPE Unicamp Student Chapter. 4 members attended.
• 1 October - UATF, Potosi, Bolivia, held the talk “First information meeting about AAPG”. 40 students attended.
• 1 October - IPN, Mexico City, Mexico, held the talk "Studying in France is all possible” by Leon Enriquez. 40 students attended.
• 2 October - UFRGS, Porto Alegre, Brazil, held the activity "Webinar about the Hydrogeological Study in Serra da Moeda, Iron Quadrangle, MG". 9 students attended.
• 2 October - UNIPAMPA, Caçapava do Sul, Brazil, held the lecture "Composition of the sandstones of the Serra do Segredo Formation, Caçapava do Sul - RS, Brazil" by Adriano Oliveira. 20 students attended.
• 3 October - IPN, Mexico City, Mexico, Participated in: "1st session of the Oil&Gas community. Discussion table with presentation of successful cases". 67 students attended.
• 4 October - UNI, Lima, Peru, held the conference "Dissemination of the AAPG EMD: Non-conventional, and critical minerals" by Miguel Nicho. 15 students attended.
• 4 October - UNMSM, Lima, Peru, held the short course "AutoCad 2015" by Student Marco Santivañez. 10 students attended.
• 5 October - EAFIT, Medellin, Colombia, held the course "Basin Modelling" by Ivan Olaya and Olga Villarreal. 13 students and 3 young professionals attended.
• 7 October - UCV, Caracas, Venezuela, held the presentation "Oratory Applied to Geosciences" by Richard Quintana (Geophysical Engineer). 20 students attended.
• 7 October - UPAMPLONA, Cúcuta, Colombia, Held the Courses "Basic principles of Photogeology” and “Geomorphology, fourth session” by Laura Carrero. 12 Students attended.
• 7-11 October - UNICAMP, Campinas, Brazil, participated in the TOTAL TPA course “Structural Interpretation of Seismic Data”. 7 members attended.
• 9 October - UNIPAMPA, Caçapava do Sul, Brazil, held the lecture "Crustal thickness of Rio Grande do Sul by seismological method Recptor function" by Matheus da Cruz. 19 students attended.
• 9 October - IPN, Mexico City, Mexico, held the activity "Oil reservoir characterization: Integration of geoscience disciplines is very important to reduce uncertainty” by Luis Valencia. 40 Students attended.
• 9-14 October - Caracas, Venezuela, held the online course “Petrophysical characterization of unconventional deposits” by PETROVEN Consulting & Training C.A. 10 students participated.
• 10, 17 and 28 October- UNAL, Bogotá, Colombia, held a preparation course for the IBA 2020. 13 students attended.
• 10 October- UBA, Buenos Aires, Argentina attended the course "Software StarSteer in Geostering" by Rogii. 5 students attended.
• 10 October - UNMSM, Peru, held the short course "Adobe Illustrator" by the student Iman Pelaez. 15 students attended.
• 12 and 13 October - UNP, Piura, Peru, held the activity "Workshop: Structural Geaology Applied to Explorations" by Eng. Carlos Mariscal Huamán. 15 students attended.
• 16 October - UFRRJ, Seropédica, Brazil, held the activity ''Cinema Chapter''. 7 students attended.
• 16 October, UniAndes, Bogota, Colombia, held "Introduction to artificial intelligence applied to geosciences" by Ph.D. Roderick Perez Altamar (Geophysical Engineer and President at ScientiaENERGY). 2 students of AAPG UCV Student Chapter participated online.
• 16 October - UNIPAMPA, Caçapava do Sul, Brazil, held the lecture "Structural and stratigraphic analysis based on the interpretation of seismic attributes of the Pelotas Basin" by Victor Aguilera, 25 students attended.
• 16 October - UPAMPLONA, Cúcuta, Colombia, attended the conference "Thanks to the rocks: Geology beyond Natural Science" by Flover Rodriguez, Executive Director from ACGGP. 51 students attended.
• 17 October - UPAMPLONA, Cúcuta, Colombia. Held the course "Practical application of basin analysis: A vision of how Basin Analysis is applied in practice, Catatumbo and Putumayo case studies" by Edgar Chajid Kairuz senior Geologist from ACGGP. 31 students attended.
• 17-19 October - Caracas, Venezuela, held the activity “Matlab online and classroom course applied to geophysics and SEG-Y file management”. 10 students benefited.
• 18 October - UNC, Córdoba, Argentina, held the activity "Sedimentary Basins, Plays and Prospects in the Exploration of Hydrocarbons. Examples of the World and Argentina" by the Lic. in Geology Gustavo Vergani. 35 students attended.
• 18 October - UNS, Bahía Blanca, Argentina, held the conference "Palynology: Principles and applications" dictated by PhD. Marcelo Martinez. 22 Geology students attended.
• 18 October - UPAMPLONA, Cúcuta, Colombia. Held the Courses: "Mining workshop: Geological, mining and environmental aspects; example of the Soto Norte project" by Margareth Guerrero and Alfonso Palacio, senior geologists from MINESA. 61 students attended.
• 19 October - UNICAMP, Campinas, Brazil, held the Technical Visit to Replan (Paulínia Refinery) – Petrobras for SC’s members, geology and geography undergraduate students from the unit GN304 – Field Work (IG – Unicamp). 7 SC members, 30 students, and 3 professors attended.
• 19 and 20 October - UNIPAMPA, Caçapava do Sul, Brazil, held the activity: "II Unipampa AAPG Student Chapter Male and Female Futsal Tournament". 40 students attended.
• 20-23 October - UNICAMP, Campinas, Brazil, attended the Geology Symposium of the Southeast (Geosudeste) with an AAPG exhibit space. 9 SC members attended.
• 22 October - UCV, Caracas, Venezuela, held the presentation "All about Imperial Barrel Award" by IBA 2019 team. 10 participants.
• 22 October - UPAMPLONA, Cúcuta, Colombia, held the courses "Basic principles of Photogeology” and “Geomorphology, fifth session” by Diego Hernandez, advisor. 12 students attended.
• 23-24 October - UFRRJ, Seropédica, Brazil, participated in ''National Week of Science and Technology''. 8 students attended.
• 24 October - UCV, Caracas, Venezuela, held the presentation "Geophysical technologies for naturally fractured deposits and their advances" by Sergio Rodríguez (Geophysical Engineer at Geoterra Services & Servipet). 17 students attended.
• 24 October - UCV, Caracas, Venezuela, in conjunction with YP Chapter held the presentation "Possible connection between the elements of the Solar System and sedimentary cycles on Earth" by Msc. Jhonny Casas (AAPG LACR Delegate for Venezuela). 21 participants.
• 24 October - UDELAR, Motevideo, Uruguay, was invited to participate in the webinar "Advances in Geophysical Technology about naturally fractured reservoirs" held by the Universidad Central de Venezuela Students Chapter, speaker Sergio F. Rodriguez. 6 students and 1 prefessional attended.
• 26, 29 and 31 October - UNIPAMPA, Caçapava do Sul, Brazil, held the short course "Introductory course in sedimentary petrology: modal counting through the Petroledge software" by Adriano Oliveira. 10 students attended.
• 30 October - UNIPAMPA, Caçapava do Sul, Brazil, held the lecture "Virtual models of outcrops: a new perspective in geosciences" by Jean Taglieber, 20 students attended.
• 30 October - UERJ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, participation on OTC Brazil 2019. 3 UERJ AAPG student members attended.
• 31 October and 1 November - UNISINOS, São Leopoldo, Brazil, between these days happened the AAPG Day, which featured 2 lectures and one short course with over 100 participants. Lecture 1: “Pre-Salt: The Saga and Pre-Salt Geopolitics” by Marco Antônio Pinheiro Machado; Lecture 2: “Climate Changes” by Gerson Fauth, Karlos Kocchann, Jeferson Simões and Ernersto Lavina; Short course: “Introduction to Petrel for Stratigraphic Sequences” by Mateus Rodrigues de Vargas.

YP Chapters

Argentina

• 24 September – Chapter hosted the talk “Geological Evolution of Argentine Offshore Basin”. 50 people attended. (Activity not included in September report)

Bolivia

• 7-8 October – YP Chapter & Bolivia Delegate participated of XI FIGAS (International Forum of Oil & Gas) held in Tarija. AAPG had a booth to promote membership and AAPG activities in Bolivia.
• 17 October – Launched the II AAPG YP Bolivia Photography Contest “CaptureGeo Bolivia 2019.” Winning photos will be featured on the 2020 AAPG YP Bolivia calendar. (deadline: November 10).
• 17 October – Victoria Ferreyra, Geologist from Schlumberger and Argentina Delegate for AAPG, presented “New Techniques of Geological Modelling” as part of the XVI Session “Cycle of Geoscientific Talks”, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. 16 Students, YPs and professionals attended.

Brazil

• 9 October – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Online Course presented by YP Laura Santos: "Machine Learning Applied to Geoscience". 21 people attended.
• 18 October – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. YP Priscila Amaral delivered the talk "Women of Success" for an entrepreneur network event. 50 people attended.
• 28 October – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Held the talk “Facies Modeling in exploration phase” by Ezequiel Bastos, Halliburton. 5 people attended.
• 30 October – Brazil. Chapter hosted online talk “History and development of petroleum geology knowledge formation in Brazil” by researcher Drielli Peyrl (USP). 13 people attended.
• 30 October September – 3 chapter members participated in OTC (Offshore Technology Conference) Brazil in Rio de Janeiro.

Colombia

• 22 October – Bogotá, Colombia. Chapter hosted the talk “Unconventional Oil & Gas: World-Class Challenges and Opportunities, from the Speaker’s Perspective” by Juan Manuel Lacayo. 12 people attended.

Mexico

• 3 October – Mexico City. Chapter held the PM TOUR “International Congress on Project Management” with the participation of M.S. Manuel Cruz Castillo gave the presentation on “Petroleum Geology in the placement of an injector well for hydroprocessing” and M.I. Alfonso Reyes Pimentel of the Mexican Petroleum Association (AMEXHI). Speakers talked with the student community about advice for project management. 67 people attended.
• 30 October – Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Chapter members attended RAUGM 2019 presented the paper "Oil as a Divulgation Topic" in the session of "Communication, Dissemination and Education of Earth Sciences". 80 people attended.

Peru

• Activities reported in the Earth Science Week section.

Trinidad & Tobago

• 17 October – Rosana Lue Chin and Trisha Vincent presented the Financial Literacy Talk at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, Trinidad. 26 persons attended.

Venezuela

• 22 October – UCV, Caracas, Venezuela. Chapter members held lecture about Imperial Barrel Award information and motivation. 10 people attended.
• 24 October – UCV, Caracas, Venezuela. Chapter hosted the technical lecture “Possible connection between elements of the Solar System and sedimentary cycles on Earth”. 18 people attended.

Upcoming Meetings

• AAPGLAC Steering Committee Meeting: Wednesday, 13 November, 16:00 Bogota/Lima; 17:00 Port of Spain; 18:00 Rio de Janeiro/Buenos Aires