The environmental initiative "Altyn Dala" received the prestigious The Earthshot Prize 2024 in the category of "Protection and Restoration of Nature" for its outstanding achievements in preserving the steppe ecosystems of Kazakhstan.
The "Altyn Dala" conservation initiative was founded in 2005 as a long-term partnership between the government structures of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kazakhstan Association for Biodiversity Conservation (ASBK), and international environmental organizations such as Fauna & Flora International (FFI), the Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS), and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). The initiative aimed to unite efforts in the restoration of saiga populations and the preservation of biodiversity in Kazakhstan's steppes.
The first coordinator, initiator of the creation of the Altyn Dala State Nature Reserve, and leader of the comprehensive scientific expedition to describe its territory was Dr. Tatiana Bragina, a professor at the Kostanay Regional University named after Akhmet Baitursynov. Currently, the work on studying and preserving the saiga is led by her student Albert Salemgareev, a graduate of the U. Sultangazina Pedagogical Institute.
