The German Speleological Federation (german: Verband der deutschen Höhlen- und Karstforscher, VdHK) is an

umbrella organisation An umbrella organization is an association of (often related, industry-specific) institutions who work together formally to coordinate activities and/or pool resources. In business, political, and other environments, it provides resources and ofte ...

for speleologists in Germany and a point of contact for the issues connected with

caves A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

and

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

landscapes. 90 regional clubs (especially caving clubs) and groups, as well as 5 state federations and over 500 individual members, belong to the Federation. Its main aims are the exploration and conservation of caves and karst features in Germany. Cave exploration in Germany is a voluntary activity that is carried out with the involvement of the ''VdHK'' and its members. Their main concern is to look after natural karst and cave terrain in a responsible manner. The Federation is a

voluntary association A voluntary group or union (also sometimes called a voluntary organization, common-interest association, association, or society) is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement, usually as volunteering, volunteers, to form a body (or organ ...

. The Federation was founded in 1955 at

Donauwörth Donauwörth () is a town and the capital of the Donau-Ries district in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is said to have been founded by two fishermen where the rivers Danube (Donau) and Wörnitz meet. The city is part of the scenic route called "Roman ...

and its head office is in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

. The Federation sees itself as the successor organisation to the Federation of German Speleologists (''Hauptverbandes Deutscher Höhlenforscher''), which existed from 1922 to 1945, and the German Karst Exploration Union (''Deutsche Gesellschaft für Karstforschung''), which ran from 1947 to 1950. The VdHK is a member of the

Union Internationale de Spéléologie International Union of Speleology (french: links=no, Union Internationale de Spéléologie, UIS) is a scientific non-governmental organization dedicated to the international promotion and coordination of cave and karst research. Founded in 1965, ...

(UIS).

External links

*
International Union of Speleology
Caving organizations Nature conservation organisations based in Germany Scientific organisations based in Germany Karst formations of Germany {{caving-stub