Come explore geoscience innovation and collaboration in Australia with host Anne Thompson. We talk to researchers at three universities and one geologic survey - who are also all involved in the Society of Economic Geologists 2025 Conference in Brisbane, Queensland.

Joins us to learn more about advancing science and discovery in Australia!

SEG 2025

Rick Valenta, chair of SEG 2025 provides a broad view of the work of the SMI (Sustainable Minerals Institute, University of Queensland) and how his role there as Director has influenced the conference. What makes minerals mineable includes all the other aspects that sometimes are neglected, including the impact of geoscience on society, and on individual communities.

A recent highlight in Australia is the final release of the Queensland Deposit Atlas, a vast and comprehensive public data set. The Atlas was commissioned and funded by the Queensland Geologic Survey and completed by SMI. Vladimir Lisitsin provides an overview of the data and the many and varied mineral deposits found in Queensland.

To get a flavour of what might be in the technical program I chatted with two keynote speakers. Angela Escolme, CODES, University of Tasmania provided insights into her work with a large collaborative project aimed at understanding the overprinted, transition zones in porphyry systems. Lastly, David Giles, University of South Australia delved into how a structural geologist got to be involved in creating the innovative coiled tubing drill rig and what it really means to be truly collaborative.

Theme music is Confluence by Eastwinds

eastwindsmusic.com

SEG 2025 is in Brisbane, Australia, September 26-29th. This will be a dynamic conference with cutting edge science, new discoveries, technology and more. Opportunities for networking and learning include several workshops and field trips before and after the event, relaxed social events and of course the conference itself. See you there!

Alternative business models in mineral exploration and mining can build value for communities, benefit resource companies and influence perceptions in our industry. This episode highlights two innovative companies who are changing the business of mining: Nations Royalty and VRIFY.

Nations Royalty, a TSXV-listed royalty company, is focused on creating royalty diversification for indigenous people. Kody Penner, VP of Corporate Development at Nations Royalty, joined host Halley Keevil to explain the background and the business model. First, he tells his own story as an indigenous person growing up surrounded by British Columbia’s mining industry. The company, Nations Royalty, is the first indigenous-owned mining royalty company, and their indigenous ownership and management make them unique. He elaborates on how they balance corporate goals with indigenous goals and values, how they are creating wealth for indigenous groups, and what is next for the company in the future.

Next, Steve de Jong, CEO of VRIFY, talks about the company’s history and how they came to their current business model as an AI-focused mineral exploration and software service provider. Launching at PDAC in 2024 with just 4 clients, VRIFY now has 30 clients and gains 5-7 new clients per month. Steve discusses how their team of geoscientists and machine learning experts utilize every scrap of data from a company in order to build predictive models that deliver targets to their clients. He reviews the many ways in which VRIFY is unique in the industry, including the symbiotic relationship they have with clients, enabling them to use their proprietary software alongside the VRIFY team. He hints at some exciting current and future successes that the listener should stay tuned for. Steve believes we are about to enter into a period where AI will be ubiquitous in the mining industry, and VRIFY will be ahead of the game.

Theme music is Confluence by Eastwinds

eastwindsmusic.com

Come join us in Brisbane, Australia for SEG 2025, September 26-29th. This will be a dynamic conference with cutting edge science, new discoveries, technology and more. Opportunities for networking and learning include several workshops and field trips before and after the event, relaxed social events and of course the conference itself. See you there!

We are thrilled to bring you the top entries from the 2024 SEG Student Chapter Podcast Challenge as a special set of three episodes. This is the third and final bonus episode in this special series. We'll hear two segments that consider ore deposit models and environment of formation for Au deposits, traveling from China to Japan.

Chapter 1: From mineral system to exploration: a case in giant Zaozigou Au-Sb deposits

SEG STUDENT CHAPTER: China University of Geosciences, Beijing (CUG-B)

Host: Jiayi Wang

Guest: Jingyuan Zhang

This podcast episode focuses on the understanding of mineral systems and their role in shaping exploration strategies, with the giant Zaozigou Au-Sb deposits as a case study. Detailed geological mapping, geochronology, fluid inclusion, and structure analysis have revealed the structural framework, precipitation mechanisms, and the separation of gold and antimony in the Zaozigou deposits. These theoretical insights lead to practical exploration advancements in predicting the gold-antimony orebody occurrence, avoiding ineffective engineering practices, and locating the distribution of native gold

Chapter 2: Hot spring deposits - key finder for hidden ore deposits along the Peruvian Andes

SEG STUDENT CHAPTER: SEG - NMSM (Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos)

Hosts: Rosa Razuri Prado and Paula Martinez Segura

Producers: Alvaro Zapata Cornejo, Jean Crisólogo Zapata, Braian Vara Guzman

Guest: Diana Pajuelo Aparicio, Professor at Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Peru

Peru is a country well-known for its complex geology, with hot springs distributed along high altitudes surrounded by unconsolidated deposits overlapping exhumed ore deposits. This podcast episode is focused on understanding the presence of economically important metals trapped inside hot spring deposits, revealing a potential key finder for uncovering hidden ore deposits.

Diana Pajuelo, geologist with 11 years of experience in regional geology and geothermal energy, participated in various projects with the Geological Survey of Peru. Her expertise provides a perspective on two types of hot spring deposits, the capacity for hosting metals influenced by biotic or abiotic factors, and the overlap between ore deposits and hot springs along the Andes.

Theme music is Hot Wheel Breakdown by Elliot Holmes stock.adobe.com epidemicsound.com

Adobe Stock ID: #356951050

Come join us in Brisbane, Australia for SEG 2025, September 26-29th. This will be a dynamic conference with cutting edge science, new discoveries, technology and more. Opportunities for networking and learning include several workshops and field trips before and after the event, relaxed social events and of course the conference itself. See you there!