A NEW WAY TO DECARBONIZE THE ECONOMY

The first international conference “A NEW WAY OF DECARBONIZATION OF THE ECONOMY (KZGT-2023)” was held at the Al-Farabi Kazakh National University on November 8-9, 2023. Decarbonization of the economy is a prerequisite for sustainable development and is aimed at preventing the catastrophic consequences of global climate change.

Kazakhstan, like the entire world community, is actively looking for ways to adapt to global climate change, striving to ensure sustainable and progressive economic growth, social responsibility of society and environmental protection in partnership and peace. At the beginning of 2023, the "Strategy for achieving Carbon Neutrality of the Republic of Kazakhstan until 2060" was adopted, which was preceded by extensive and multidisciplinary work on the implementation of the "Concept of transition of the Republic of Kazakhstan to a "green economy", the development and implementation of state programs for industrial and innovative development, the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

There were 7 sections in seven different directions at the conference. The section "Environmental Sustainability, Social Economy" was organized and conducted by the UNESCO chair for Sustainable Development. The moderator of the section was the head of the department, Professor, Candidate of Geographical Sciences Bazarbayeva T.A.

The purpose of the Section is to demonstrate the most optimal solutions for improving environmental sustainability and social responsibility of society on the path of decarbonization of the economy. 

More than 30 people took part in the work of the section, including a specialist in Islamic finance from Indonesia, as well as representatives of universities and research institutes of Central Asia from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan - Al–Farabi KazNU, Abai KazNPU, the Institute of Economics of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Nukus Mining Institute and others.

The speakers at the Section stated that the modern academic community, scientists and university specialists influence sustainable development and the achievement of carbon neutrality with their scientific research and development, high-quality education and the formation of social responsibility of society members, creating knowledge to solve urgent problems of decarbonization of the economy and adaptation to climate change, such as reducing carbon dioxide emissions and atmospheric air quality management; conservation of ecosystems, assessment of their natural and economic potential and ecosystem services; sustainable use of natural resources and resource conservation; introduction of green economy and modern standards to assess the social and environmental responsibility of business, the creation of environmentally friendly cities; media coverage of climate change and sustainable development and, of course, the development of science, education and international cooperation for their implementation.

The following suggestions and recommendations are the result of the reports presented at the Section and the discussion that took place:

- to continue scientific research aimed at the creation and implementation of green technologies, advanced methods and techniques of environmental management through participation in international and national competitions of scientific programs and projects; 

- to improve the training of specialists through bachelor's, master's, doctoral programs on sustainable development, social responsibility and decarbonization of the economy, to create new interdisciplinary educational programs, training courses of disciplines focused on the acquisition of practical skills and competencies, involving interested organizations, employers: public and private sector, industrial enterprises;

- to contribute to increasing the potential of young people in the implementation of educational, scientific and social programs and projects on the topic of the section by creating and promoting student start-ups, associations, unions, volunteer initiatives;

- strengthen international cooperation for the exchange of information, experience and joint interdisciplinary innovative projects using the information and communication online platform "Green Bridge across Generations" https://greenbridgework.kaznu.kz/;

- to recommend public organizations and mass media to promote the development of the movement in support of environmentally sustainable development, including initiatives of government, business and civil society, and to promote the best practices.