INITIAL SITUATION

The Karaganda oblast is located in the centre of Kazakhstan. 80 per cent of the total population of 1.38 million lives in the cities. On the territory of the oblast, drivers and impacts of climate change can be equally found. Rich in natural resources, the oblast is the industrial centre, contributing around 24 per cent of all emissions in Kazakhstan. 60 per cent of the oblast region lies in a semi-desert where winters get colder and summers hotter. The settlements are more covered with smog due to the decreasing wind and in spring there is flooding due to regular melting of snow. However, there is a lack of information on climate change. The Karaganda oblast still has no climate policy: a risks and vulnerability assessment has not yet been carried out, and adaptation measures are not even mentioned.

TARGET GROUP

The IKI Small Grants project targets up to 20 persons representing science, civil society, the private sector, and international cooperation. Approximately 20 experts, 50 NGO members and 20 reporters and bloggers benefit from the project through participating in the activities. Around 100 state officers benefit directly from the project activities as participants and another 1,000 indirectly as target audience of project informational materials. The entire population of the Karaganda oblast (1.38 million) benefits indirectly on the long-term perspective from the project, including at least 100,000 of the most vulnerable inhabitants (living in desert or flooded areas, farmers etc.).

APPROACH AND ACTIVITIES

The IKI Small Grants project aims to establish a climate action group to elaborate a participate climate change adaptation plan of the Karaganda oblast. For this, the organisation enters dialogue with the administration of the Karaganda to outline the need of establishing such a group. The climate action group is then further integrated into the government structure and the decision-making processes of the Karaganda oblast. Therefore, the group is meeting regularly to plan and implement activities on climate adaptation. The group’s members receive two trainings from international experts on climate risks to promote climate change adaptation.

The organisation elaborates a climate risk profile of the Karaganda oblast through exchanging with international experts and collecting and analysing information. The climate risk profile is then presented to governmental bodies and the public. It is published on the platform of Karaganda Regional Ecological Museum (EcoMuseum). Additionally, spreading in local mass-media and social media campaigns are organised.

The project further includes a training with 12 theoretical and practical sessions on climate change and adaptation measures for local decision-makers. The climate action group prepares guidelines for experts and local decision-makers to develop a climate change adaptation plan for Karaganda oblast. Other activities seek to approve and implement the climate change adaptation plan and present it in a workshop at national level to promote and upscale development mechanisms. The EcoMuseum is also organising a policy dialogue with the aim of incorporating the activities mentioned in the climate change adaptation plan into the development strategy of the oblast.

CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT

IKI Small Grants supports Karaganda Regional Ecological Museum in their organisational capacity development through:

• Strategic planning with team building

ABOUT THE ORGANISATION

Karaganda Regional Ecological Museum was established in Karaganda in 1995 and registered with the Karaganda Department of the Ministry of Justice as a public association in 1997. Its mission is to investigate environmental problems in Kazakhstan, raise awareness of local communities, and increase the influence of the population on environmental issues. Therefore, democratic processes within the civil society need to be strengthened through the involvement of local communities in decision-making processes for improving the general environmental situation in the country.