ABSTRACT

The present political and socio-economic world context for geomorphology is the disparity between the wealth of nations, a rapid increase in the number of people living at subsistence levels, and a determination that the standard of living of the people of the developing countries should be raised. Early practical geomorphology, in which geomorphological knowledge was used to design, improve or control projects, was usually carried out by agriculturalists, foresters and engineers who were involved with coastal protection, land management or river basin control. Geomorphological research in the UK and in many other countries is funded by government, by private university sources, by grants from charitable trusts, by international agencies, and by commerce and industry. One of the joys of modern geomorphology is the willingness of scientists in other disciplines to assist its efforts to achieve a greater understanding of natural environment systems.