The first thing you think when
you see Jorge is that he conveys security and tranquility. His strongly
modulated voice makes it ideal for children to become engrossed watching a
rock, something that before they might perceive as boring. And this geologist
manages to convey his enthusiasm without any effort.
He was born 37 years ago in
Requena (Valencia) of Norman mother and Almerian father, but Jorge considers
Almería his home. “Even though many people think that Almerians are “cold” in
reality they are warm and welcoming. The city and the province are very
cosmopolitan. ” Also having 11 months of summer a year helps.
He is a fan of filmmaking saga
The Lord of the Rings. He loves thrillers, "those where you do not know
how it will end up, or who is the murderer." Also the historical novels.
Key names: Martin Scorsese, Ken Follett coincides with ... Lola´s affection for
Martin Silver Eye trilogy as well. We will have to read it, then. And apart
from books and movies, he likes monologues of Dani Rovira and David El Guapo in
the comedy club.
He is a founder of “Natures”,
a company dedicated to environmental education and ecotourism. In the Casa de
la Ciencia “Nature´s” boys and girls play a key role – they are the guides of permanent
exhibitions. Jorge has dedicated his heart and soul in explaining cetaceans,
invertebrates and, of course, GeoSevilla. The majority of his listeners are school
children that come to visit, though there are adults who want a guided tour
too.
Jorge
has no doubt: the best part of his job is to work with children. And when a
little girl or boy leave the Museum saying “Bye Jorge, when I grow older I will
be a geologist” … You can´t compare it to anything else. It is also a demanding
job, "sometimes when visitors are too young you have to focus not so much
on explaining but rather on the visual aspect of the exhibition, so it catches
their eye.” He recalls that recently there came a blind girl who explored the
expositions of invertebrates and geology ... by touch.
In addition, “Natures” also organizes
different workshops such as Comic and film, The crystal world and Geoland… “The
first workshop that we did in the Museum was that of ´The dinosaur in the city ´that
now is called ´Rebuilding a dinosaur´.” “It would be great if Casa de la
Ciencia continued setting up new exhibitions; I without a doubt would put one
about dinosaurs which is the most liked by the children.” They like them so
much that when they come to see the skeletons of cetaceans they automatically
think they are dinosaurs…
The children come up with other
funny anecdotes. Jorge remembers the time explaining the concept of endemism
and gave the example of the Iberian lynx, when a little voice was heard:
"Iberian is that you can eat, as a ham." Or those times when
children, especially those from religious schools, ask about fossils, "And
this was before or after God?” Risky question to answer for someone who is not
Catholic …
Besides geology, Jorge is
passionate about landscapes… And part of his job is to organize guides in
hiking tours. It might be that “I am very lucky to be able to combine my
passion with job.” He suggests visiting the Sierra Norte Geological Park in
Seville: beautiful views and very interesting.
In the years to come he wants
to continue working in the Museum, “the way my colleagues treat me is amazing
without doubts.” Even though there will come time when he will move back home
to continue teaching in some remote village of Almeria, aggregate and intimate.
And he plans also to travel to Scotland and New Zealand for those wild and green
landscapes (perhaps the adventures of Frodo Baggins also have had something to
do with it).
"In
general I am a kind of medieval knight: I like to live high, possibly in a
castle (laughs), surrounded by lakes and mountains ..."
