Medeu Akhmetkal
Geographer, geomorphologist, Doctor of Geographic Sciences (1994), Professor (1998), Academician of the International Academy of Sciences of Ecology, Human and Nature Safety (2003), Laureate of the State Scientific Scholarship for Outstanding Scientists of the Republic of Kazakhstan (1999-2000). Born on December 20, 1950, in the village of Mukry, Taldykorgan region. Graduated from the Geography Faculty of S.M. Kirov Kazakh State University (1977). After graduating from the university, he worked as an instructor at the regional Komsomol committee in Taldykorgan. In 1978, he was invited to work in the laboratory of engineering geology of the geomorphology department of the K.I. Satpaev Institute of Geological Sciences. Since 1987, he has been a senior researcher, deputy director (1989-1994) of the Institute of Geography, concurrently heading the glaciology laboratory (1992-1995), and chief researcher (1995-2000). Head of the Department of Geomorphology at al-Farabi Kazakh National University (2000-2001).
Since April 2001, he has been the director of the Institute of Geography. Chairman of the specialized council for the defense of doctoral and candidate dissertations, member of the scientific and technical council of JSC "Earth Sciences, Metallurgy and Enrichment Center," member of the International Scientific Coordination Council on Geography (Moscow). A. Medeu's scientific activities are associated with the management of natural-destructive exogenous processes (landslides, mudflows, collapses), applied to the conditions of seismically active mountainous territories of Kazakhstan. He has developed a new scientific approach to the problem of management, the basis of which consists of segments (blocks of knowledge and information and actions), taking into account the patterns of spatial distribution and formation of landslides, predictive assessment of landslide hazard of the territory, as well as determining the impact of existing and projected infrastructure on landslide processes. The logical continuation of these works is research in the field of "safety." In terms of solving this problem in relation to the economic development of mountain and foothill territories, the main principles and strategic approaches to ensuring the safety of the population, objects of socio-economic purpose, and land from the destructive impact of hazardous processes have been scientifically substantiated. The conceptual solution to the problem is determined on the basis of his developments on the assessment and management of landslide risk by assessing the risk of occurrence and the risk of impact. Theoretical and methodological proposals are aimed at reducing landslide risk to an acceptable level. Another important direction of the scientist's scientific approach is the study of natural-anthropogenic relief-forming processes to solve problems of ecology, dynamic geomorphology, and engineering geology. These developments, reflecting the development of the modern relief of Kazakhstan, are taken into account when compiling schemes for the protection of the natural environment and objects of socio-economic purpose located in various regions of the country. For the first time in landslide protection practice under the scientific and methodological guidance of A. Medeu in 1997, the GU "Kazselzaschita" prevented a landslide situation by emptying lake № 6 at the foot of the Mametova Glacier. The project was implemented in accordance with a special resolution of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
A. Medeu is the main compiler of the map of the background assessment of landslide hazard of the territory of the Kazakh SSR (1988), the geomorphological map of Kazakhstan (1991) and the Semirechye (1997), the map of the latest tectonics of Semirechye (1997), the map of geomorphological processes of the CIS and adjacent territories (2000). Editor-in-chief and responsible executive of the fundamental work in three volumes "National Atlas of the Republic of Kazakhstan" and three volumes of the monograph "Republic of Kazakhstan" (2004-2006). Author of about 100 scientific papers in publications of Kazakhstan, near and far abroad. Under his guidance, three doctoral and ten candidate dissertations were defended. Akhmetkal Medeu was awarded the breastplate "For Merits in the Development of Science of Kazakhstan" (2001), medals "For Merits in the Field of Ecology named after N.K. Roerich" (2008), "20 Years of the Organization of Environmental Protection Bodies of the Republic of Kazakhstan" (2008).