• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.65-75
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• 2021

Over the past decade, the number of national geoparks has rapidly increased, and 13 areas are currently designated as geoparks. After Jeju Island (2010), Cheongsong (2017), Mudeungsan (2018), and Hantangang River (2020) National Geoparks were listed as UNESCO Global Geoparks. Despite the continuous increase in the number of national geoparks and UNESCO global geoparks, the public interest in geoparks and the effect of regional economic development by geoparks are not yet very significant. Some geopark management organizations have developed geopark characters to appeal to the public through intimacy and friendliness, utilizing parks for education and tourism. However, the characters are not being utilized properly due to a lack of plannings, expertise, storytelling, and management. For geopark characters, which have been neglected since development, to perform their original roles, content production based on appropriate budget compilation and analysis of consumption trends in the character market is necessary. Instead of merely using geopark characters, geopark characters should be loved by the public, as well as local residents.