2022, December 8
NU nowScience
Climate Talks Brings Together Leading Scientists and Environmentalists
2022, December 8
Share this articleThe event brought together the efforts of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), NU Office for Sustainable Development, Kazakh Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources and the National Conservation Initiative Corporate Foundation.
At the 27th UN Climate Change Conference, held this November in Egypt, the efforts to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century were recognized as insufficient. The participants agreed to revise national plans. Kazakhstan has already developed a Strategy pledging to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.
Kazakhstan’s commitment to reduce greenhouse emissions, the results of international negotiations reached at the 27th Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC, as well as the role of science in this process were the topic of the two-day international educational conference Climate Talks held at NU (NU) on December 7-8. The event brought together the efforts of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), NU Office for Sustainable Development, Kazakh Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources and the National Conservation Initiative Corporate Foundation.
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To achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, Kazakhstan needs to continue its transition to renewable energy sources, improve energy efficiency and energy conservation, expand electricity-based technologies, and use low- or zero-emission methods in industrial production, Kuanysh Beisengazin, Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of the Institute for Economic Research, believes.
"Emissions in Kazakhstan are 351 million tons. If we account for 0.8 percent on a global scale, which is not much, but if you take it per capita, it's already a 9th top result in the world. We understand that Kazakhstan's economy is energy-intensive. Accordingly, our goal is to reduce emissions gradually by 2060 and to achieve carbon neutrality. What is carbon neutrality? This does not mean that emissions should be zero. At the end of our planning period, total emissions will be reduced, captured and absorbed by technology. The reference point is 2030 when we should reduce emissions by 15% compared to 1990," said Kuanysh Beisengazin.
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Conference participants also discussed the methodology of greenhouse gas emissions, green hydrogen evolution systems, saving the Aral Sea and adaptation of the Turanian tiger. UNDP presented analyses and reports on the results of its work on public awareness of sustainable development goals within the global Stockholm+50 initiative. Together with national partners, UNDP experts visited the regions, collected proposals, learned about the problems, and explored opportunities. As Gulmira Sergazina, UNDP Climate Change Project Portfolio Manager in Kazakhstan, reported, a new project started this autumn that will support small farms using renewable energy sources.
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The conference was held in a hybrid format, with more than 100 participants, including students and young scientists, international and national experts on climate and ecology, and representatives from government agencies, public organizations, and youth initiatives. Scientists, including NU, spoke about technologies that will help achieve carbon neutrality.
"It's enough to highlight two projects. One is designed to extract carbon dioxide from emissions and inject it into reservoirs. The second project is more global: we can recycle carbon dioxide emissions after cleaning in totalizers into carbon chemistry products. This is primarily ethanol, which can serve as fuel and a valuable raw material for the chemical industry. There is no such plant in Kazakhstan yet; as far as I know, China is opening the first such plant in 2023," said NU Associate Professor Timur Atabayev.
The annual Climate Talks conference is held at NU to raise awareness among the young people about the effects of global climate change, steps that need to be taken globally and nationally to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt economies accordingly.
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As part of the conference, students presented their green projects at an exhibition Think Global, Act Local. Students showed their projects on recycling plastic and glass into building materials, recycled oil into biodiesel, an electric generating exercise bike, a vermicomposter to create natural biohumus, an application to monitor electricity consumption on campus, an electric attachment for wheelchairs, a hydroponic installation for growing fresh greens, and many others. These projects are part of the Sustainability Living Lab program supported by Chevron, which is currently being implemented at ten universities across the country.
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