Zaur Imrani, Director of the Institute of Geography of Azerbaijan and Doctor of Geographical Sciences, and Yusif Hidayatli, a doctoral student at the Institute, participated in the international event entitled “Education for Regenerative Tourism, Climate Change Adaptation and Regional Perspectives”, held in Almaty, Republic of Kazakhstan, from November 3 to 7, 2026, with the financial support of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

The international event was organized within the framework of the project entitled “Advancing Regenerative Tourism Education: Transnational University Partnerships for Climate Change Adaptation in Central Asia and the South Caucasus”.

As partners in the international project, the event brought together heads of departments, professors, lecturers, institutional representatives, researchers and doctoral students from the Department of Geography of Justus Liebig University Giessen (Germany), the Institute of Geography of Azerbaijan, the Faculty of Geography and Environmental Sciences and the UNESCO Chair for Sustainable Development at Al-Farabi Kazakh National University (Kazakhstan), the National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan, and Tajik National University.

The event was opened by project coordinator Markus Fuchs, who spoke about the advantages of regenerative tourism in Central Asia and the South Caucasus in the modern era and its integration into the education system. The main objective of the event was to promote regenerative tourism education, study the regional impacts of climate change, protect natural landscapes and expand scientific cooperation in the field of sustainable regional development.

During the first session, dedicated to regional and conceptual issues, Zaur Imrani delivered a presentation entitled “Tourism Potential of Turkic States and Ways of Utilizing It”. His presentation addressed the role of the rich natural and geographical, historical and cultural, and recreational resources of Turkic states in tourism development, opportunities for making effective use of this potential, and prospects for regional cooperation. Particular emphasis was placed on the importance of expanding tourism relations across the Turkic World, establishing a common tourism space and strengthening interregional cooperation.

Subsequently, participants discussed a range of pressing scientific issues, including the impact of climate change on regional natural systems, global environmental syndromes, the Aral Sea and Dust Bowl syndromes, the effects of drought on biodiversity, the risk of forest fires, air quality, and the mapping of agricultural landscapes using remote sensing technologies.

Another important focus of the event was the role of regenerative tourism in regional development. In this context, participants discussed the implementation of sustainable hospitality practices, tourism destination management, environmental awareness, spatial data infrastructure, and the potential of regenerative tourism in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of post-conflict territories.

The participation of the Institute of Geography of Azerbaijan in this international event contributes to expanding the presence of Azerbaijani geographical science on international scientific cooperation platforms, scientifically assessing the tourism potential of the Turkic World, and strengthening scientific ties between Central Asia and the South Caucasus.

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