WEBPAGE INDEX:
Databases / Tools / Resources
Organizations
Hydrology
Conservation
Wildlife
Parks and Nature Reserves
Sustainable Development
Pastoralism
Climate and Related Issues
Desertification / Land Degradation
Mountains
Geoscience
Note: The online sources listed below are roughly organized by topic, but many organizations have multiple, overlapping missions.
DATABASES / TOOLS / RESOURCES
- CountrySTAT: Food and Agriculture Data Network (part of the FAO's Statistics Division; web-based information system for food and agriculture statistics at regional, national, and subnational levels)
- Digital Version of the 2010 "Central Asia Atlas of Natural Resources" (bibliography lists many other useful publications)
- Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) (online reports; state-of-the-art scientific appraisal of the condition and trends in the world’s ecosystems and the services they provide, as well as the scientific basis for action to conserve and use them sustainably; over 1300 authors contributed)
- ProtectedPlanet = World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) (the most comprehensive global database on terrestrial and marine protected areas; joint project of IUCN and UNEP)
ORGANIZATIONS
- AVRDC - The World Vegetable Center (Central Asia office) (nonprofit research and development institute committed to alleviating poverty and malnutrition)
- Biodiveristy Conservation Center = Центр охраны дикой природы (NGO dedicated to nature protection projects in northern Eurasia)
- Convention on Biological Diversity (an initiative of the United Nations Environment Programme [UNEP]; search for documents by county)
- EcoDelo = ЭкоДело (environmental organization dedicated to Siberia and the Russan Far East)
- EcoForum of Uzbekistan = Экофорум Узбекистана (association of environmental and ecological NGOs and organizations)
- Environment and Security Initiative (ENVSEC) (promotes the reduction of environment and security risks through strengthened cooperation among and within countries in four regions, including Central Asia)
- FAO GeoNetwork (provides internet access to interactive maps, satellite imagery, and related spatial databases)
- Fauna & Flora International (conducts conservation work in Eurasia)
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) (offers a wide range of resources; individual country profiles provide key information on agriculture, natural resources, water management, etc.; see also the FAOSTAT online database for detailed statistical information by topic and regon)
- Global Environment Facility (GEF)
- GRID-Arendal (Norwegian center for global environmental information [excellent topical regional maps, charts, etc.])
- International Cooperative Biodiversity Groups (ICBG) Central Asia Project (addresses the interdependent issues of drug discovery, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable economic growth)
- International Socio-Ecological Union (SEC) = Международный Социально-экологический союз (МСоЭС) (allegedly the only international environmental organization to develop in Russia; English-language component of website out-of-date)
- International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) (world’s oldest and largest global environmental organization; many resources and programs)
- Ministry of Development and Green Environment = Байгаль орчин, ногоон хөгжлийн яам (Mongolia)
- Regional Environmental Center for Central Asia (CAREC) (among many other useful publications, see list of "Environmental NGOs in Central Asia" [2003, PDF])
- Regional Resource Centre for Asia and the Pacific (RRC.AP) (publications of United Nations Environment Programme [UNEP] on environmental issues in Central Asia [Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan])
- Tibet Environmental Watch (TEW)
- United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) (issues periodic environmental performance reviews [EPR] by country; an excellent source for ecological analyses by region and country; use search box to find documents)
- Wildlife Science and Conservation Center of Mongolia (WSCC)
- World Bank (website contains many relevant resources about environmental issues; search by country name and keywords) (documentary search in French)
- World Wildlife Fund (WWF) (global non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of nature) -- Regional offices: WWF Russia (covers Central Asia) and WWF Mongolia
- Zoï Environment Network (Swiss organization dedicated to solving environmental problems; useful series of online publications for Central Eurasia [e.g., Environment and security in the Amu Darya river basin and Biodiversity in Central Asia: a visual synthesis, among others])
HYDROLOGY
- Amu Darya Basin Network (many informative, online publications)
- Amur-Heilong River Basin Information Center (click on "Full Contents" for extensive site map)
- Aqueduct: Measuring and Mapping Water Risk (global, interactive maps of water risk; initiative of the World Resources Institute)
- Aralkum - a Man-Made Desert: The Desiccated Floor of the Aral Sea (Central Asia) (Berlin: Springer, 2012, edited by Siegmar-W. Breckle, Walter Wucherer, Liliya A. Dimeyeva, and Nathalia P. Ogar)
- CA Water Info (database on water use, water energy, water and land resources, and water-related economic matters in the Aral Sea Basin; hydrological maps of Central Asia by country)
- Central Asian and Caucasus Regional Fisheries and Aquaculture Commission (CACFish) (a division of the FAO; its mission is to promote the development, conservation, rational management and best utilization of living aquatic resources, as well as the sustainable development of aquaculture in Central Asia and the Caucasus)
- Global Water Forum (initiative of the UNESCO Chair in Water Economics and Transboundary Water Governance)
- International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) (separate links for the Executive Committee, a working body of the IFAS: Executive Committee / Executive Committee) (see also: WaterWiki.net)
- International Water Management Institute-Central Asia (IWMI)
- Interstate Commission for Water Coordination (ICWC) = Межгосударственная координационная водохозяйственная комиссия Центральной Азии (MKBK) (inter-governmental organization for managing the Aral Sea Basin)
- Network of Basin Organizations for Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central Asia (EECCA) = Сеть водохозяйственных организаций стран Восточной Европы, Кавказа и Центральной Азии (СВО ВЕКЦА)
- Water and Adaptation Interventions in Central and West Asia (Aral Sea) (project by FutureWater; see associated online project publications)
- "Biodiversity conservation in Central Asia: An Analysis of Biodiversity and Current Threats and Initial Investment Portfolio" (1998 report edited by V. Krever, O. Pereladova, M. Williams, and H. Jungius) (extensive study sponsored by the World Wildlife Fund)
- "Central Asia and Mongolia Bioresources and Biosecurity Network: Capacity Development on Access to Genetic Resources, Benefit–Sharing, and Biosafety in Central Asia and Mongolia" (2004 report by the UNU-IAS [United Nations University-Institute of Advances Studies])
- "Conservation agriculture in Central Asia: status, policy, institutional support, and strategic framework for its promotion" (2013 report by the FAO Sub-Regional Office for Central Asia [FAO-SEC])
- Conservation Agriculture (FAO initiative; see list of country projects, e.g., Manual on Conservation Agriculture Practices in Uzbekistan [Aziz Nurbekov, 2008])
- Nature Conservancy in Mongolia
- "Red List of Trees in Central Asia" (2006 document by Antonia Eastwood, Georgy Lazkov, and Adrian Newton)
- United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) (conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of genetic resources)
- Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) (an environmental treaty under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Programme)
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources)
- Large Herbivore Network (LHNet's focus is on preserving and restoring all large herbivores in Eurasia in the wild)
- Great Bustard in Central Asia (research and outreach effort)
- Przewalski Wild Horse (Takhi) (International Takhi Group)
- Snow Leopard Trust
- Law of Mongolia on Special Protected Area (passed 1994)
- "Mongolian Law on Special Protected Areas and Law on Buffer Zones: Report" (International Union for Conservation of Nature)
- Nature Reserves and Parks of Central Asia (special issue of the "Zapovedniki i Natsionalnye Parki" newsletter published by Biodiversity Conservation Centre)
- Protected Areas Maps (maps of Protected Areas in Eurasia, by Amur-Heilong River Basin Information Center)
- "Special Protected Areas of Mongolia" (detailed book review, 2000) by Dr. Alicia Camp (includes lists of PA's in each category)
- Protected Areas of Turkmenistan (Wikipedia)
- British Library for Development Studies (many online materials; "largest collection of economic and social development materials in Europe")
- Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo (CIMMYT) = International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center
- CGIAR ("global research partnership for a food secure future"; the World Bank acts as trustee for the CGIAR Fund; a consortium of 15 research centers, such as the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas [ICARDA])
- ECOLEX: The Gateway to Environmental Law (searchable, full-text database; a joint project of the FAO, IUCN and UNEP, database includes information on treaties, international soft-law and other non-binding policy and technical guidance documents, national legislation, judicial decisions, and law and policy literature)
- Division for Sustainable Development (United Nations)
- Framework convention for the protection of the environment for sustainable development in Central Asia (signed 2006)
- Global Network of National Councils for Sustainable Development and Similar Bodies (GN-NCSDS)
- International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) (see also: Sustainable Development Policy & Practice)
- Regional Environmental Centre for the Caucasus (REC Caucasus) = Региональный Экологический Центр для Кавказа (РЭЦ Кавказ) (environment and sustainable development in the South Caucasus region)
- Subregional Sustainable Development Strategy (SSDS) for Central Asia (PDF document; 2009 United National Environmental Programme)
- Making Grasslands Sustainable in Mongolia (Asian Development Bank report series ["Strengthening Carbon Financing for Grassland Management in the People's Republic of China and Mongolia"])
- Nomad Rights (Tibet)
- Pastoralism (open-access, online academic journal; content on China's sedentarization program [ 游牧民定居] in Tibet and Inner Mongolia, etc.)
- World Initiative for Sustainable Pastoralism (WISP) (initiative of the International Union for Conservation of Nature)
- Clean Air Asia Center (list of projects and publications by country; initiative of the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank, and USAID)
- Climate Change Coordination Centre of Kazakhstan = Координационного центр по изменению климата
- Climate Change Knowledge Portal (CCKP) (click on map for country information; initiative of the World Bank Group and the Global Green Growth Institute)
- Climate-Smart Planning Platform (website for finding tools, datasets, knowledge products, technical assistance, and other support)
- United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (preventing "dangerous" human interference with the climate system is the ultimate aim of the UNFCCC)
DESERTIFICATION / LAND DEGRADATION
- Central Asian Countries Initiative for Land Management (CACILM) (defunct project sponsored by the United Nations Convention for Combating Desertification [UNCCD] and Asian Development Project; menu in upper left provides project information; the project's first phase apparently ended in 2012 and was not renewed)
- Global Environment Facility (GEF) (funding mechanism for several international environmental conventions, including the UNCCD)
- International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) (global agricultural research center working with countries in the world’s dry areas)
- National Institute of Deserts, Flora and Fauna (NIDFF) (Ministry of Nature Protection, Turkmenistan)
- United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) (works to improve the living conditions for people in drylands, to maintain and restore land and soil productivity, and to mitigate the effects of drought)
MOUNTAINS
- Alliance of Central Asian Mountain Communities (AGOCA) (founded 2003, it is a network of mountain rural communities in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan; description of its mission; see its electronic newsletter, Айыл Деми)
- CAMP Alatoo (promotes sustainable development in the mountainous regions of Central Asia; successor to CAMP [Central Asia Mountain Partnership program financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)])
- CAMP Kuhiston (promotes sustainable development in the mountainous regions of Tajikistan; successor to CAMP [Central Asia Mountain Partnership program financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)])
- Hindu Kush-Himalayan (HKH) Conservation Portal
- International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) (mission is to enable sustainable and resilient mountain development for improved and equitable livelihoods through knowledge and regional cooperation; focus on Hindu Kush-Himalayan region [HKH] and regional water basins/transboundary landscapes; hosts the HKH Conservation Portal and other resources)
- Монгол Уулсын Тусгай Хамгаалалттай Газар Нутгийн Хөтөлбөр Сулжээ (Mongolian Mountains Protected Areas Program Network)
- Mountain Partnership (over 200 organizational members; dedicated to improving the lives of mountain people and protecting mountain environments around the world; sponsored by the United Nations)
- Mountain Forum (focus on Sustainable Mountain Development [SMD] around the world; maintains a digital repository of papers, books, articles, and media resources related to SMD)
- Mountain Research and Development (open-access electronic journal published since 1981)
- Mountain Societies Research Institute (MSRI) (dedicated to addressing the challenges and opportunities within Central Asian mountain communities and environments; based in Kyrgyz Republic)
GEOSCIENCE
- Central Asian Institute for Applied Geosciences (CAIAG) (joint Kyrgyz-German research organization)
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