On the first day of the International Forum "Eco Altai. Thread of Nature" discussions on sustainable development of territories were held

On the first day of the International Forum "Eco Altai. The Thread of Nature" experts discussed issues of sustainable development, ensuring a balance between economic growth and environmental protection. The Forum takes place on September 29-30, 2023 on the territory of the all-season resort "Manzherok" in the Altai Republic. The event is organized by the Government of the Altai Republic, the Roscongress Foundation and the Center for the Development of the Altai Republic.

The Forum was opened by a session dedicated to the spiritual values and cultural code of the Altai Republic. Altai Mountain is a region with an unusually picturesque landscape, located in the very center of Eurasia at the junction of several states, natural zones and cultural worlds. The Altai Republic is called the crossroads of civilizations, Russian Tibet. Today, Gorny Altai is one of the world's centers of concentration of biodiversity, protected rare and endemic species of plants and animals, especially valuable types of medicinal, food and technical raw materials grow here.

The development of the region is inextricably linked with the preservation of a unique natural heritage. Here, nature and people are able to coexist harmoniously, and strict environmental protection and socio-economic development are not mutually exclusive. Ecological consciousness, thinking, which today is given increased attention and without which the ecological sovereignty of the country is impossible, are embedded in the cultural and value code of the inhabitants of the Altai Republic.

On the first day of the Forum, a presentation of the draft Concept of Noospheric Development took place. Currently, more effective models of regional development are being developed in the world and Russia, and the Altai Republic has presented its approach based on balanced ecological, socio-economic development without compromising nature and revealing the human potential of residents. The document is aimed at the practical implementation of the region's mission – "Gorny Altai – the territory of noospheric development". The National Index of Noospheric Development of the subjects of the Russian Federation was also presented. The index was developed for the first time in order to measure the effectiveness of regional sustainable development management. A feature of the index is a unique set of indicators reflecting the level of greening of the economy, the viability of society, the natural environment, the creative potential and creative society of the regions of Russia.

The Altai Republic belongs to the geostrategic territories of the Russian Federation and has three land borders with foreign countries: China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan. To preserve the ecology, scientists advocate that 50% of the global land and seas should be transformed into interconnected protected areas, and the conservation of biological diversity – 50-60% of the territories not affected by economic activity, which is possible in the Altai Republic, unlike most regions of Russia and countries of the world.

The noospheric model of development of the republic – the cleanest region of Russia – requires a spatial model that provides protection and noospheric development. The strategy of spatial development of the Altai Republic includes the development of a territorial planning scheme of the Gorno-Altai agglomeration, a program for the integrated development of transport infrastructure, the Teletskoy agglomeration, updating the Strategy of socio-economic development of the Altai Republic. This will make it possible to implement the first noospheric development model both in our country and in the world. And the large-scale project "Big Altai" suggests that the Altai Republic located at the "crossroads of civilizations" in the future can become an important point for the development of intercultural dialogue and cross-border cooperation between China, Russia, Mongolia and Kazakhstan.

How to ensure a balance between the economic growth of the republic and environmental protection, thereby achieving an improvement in the quality of life of the population – the participants of the session "New opportunities for sustainable development of the Altai Republic: in search of a balance between economy and ecology" discussed at the Forum today. Chairman of the Public Council of the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia Alexander Zakondyrin noted that taking into account the geographical, natural, historical, national and cultural characteristics of the Altai Republic, one of the main priorities for the development of the region could be a green, creative and digital economy. Already today, as part of the implementation of the national project "Ecology", a whole range of environmental measures is being implemented in the Altai Republic. Konstantin Tsyganov, First Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation, spoke about projects to preserve forests, unique water bodies, biological diversity, and eliminate objects of accumulated environmental damage, primarily the Aktash Mining and Metallurgical Combine.

To study and restore the fauna of the region under the scientific leadership of the Institute of Ecology and Evolution. Severtsov RAS created the Center for the Conservation of Biological Diversity "Snow Leopard". The preservation of the Altai ecosystem can become an additional incentive to attract tourists. The inclusion of new tourist routes of Kosh-Agachsky, Ulagan and other districts of the Altai Republic can help reduce the negative impact on already favorite tourist routes in the region.