Youth Forum in AlmaU: Young generation solves global problems

On December 2, the Youth Forum "Innovative Solutions and Leadership in ESG and the UN SDGs" was held at AlmaU University. The topics of harassment, air pollution and mobility issues in the city of Almaty were raised.

Rector Gulnara Kurenkeyeva delivered welcoming speeches. "Everything that we have here and now, we must convey in a completely different capacity."

Minister of Science and Higher Education Sayasat Nurbek expressed his joy that students are interested in sustainable development goals. He also congratulated everyone on the upcoming holiday - Independence Day.

Sustainable development is a very important topic. Example of this was shared by Director of the Secretariat for Sustainable Development Goals, UN Chairman Khambar Bakytgul. There are many bright projects that have emerged for sustainable development. "Mother's House" is a noble Kazakh project.

Student Research: Harassment, Air, Mobility Issues

Following was the presentation of the AlmaU SDG and the SDG Legion student club. It was the members of this club who conducted a study on the topic "Harassment of girls and girls in public transport." The resulting numbers are frightening. Also, our youth raised the issue of air pollution in Almaty. There is also little positive here.

Students of the Center for Urban Studies studied the problems of mobility in Almaty. They compared pedestrian flows. It is worth noting that a counter based on the Raspberry Pi computer was used for the calculation. They found that pedestrians are 190% more likely to choose a ground pass. And there is a shortage of drivers in both Almaty and Astana. This is explained by the fact that there are too many requirements for the candidate.

However, we at AlmaU do not despair. Because it's not in our spirit. After all, the university opened its doors to Afghan girls, thereby giving them a ticket to a prosperous life. Just about this, the head of the center for political research at AlmaU, Danial Saari, spoke about this. And our guests - students of the University of Narxoz pleased with the results of the phyto-vegetative barrier.

Time flew by quickly. At 12:00 the organizers offered a networking session. All you have to do is enter the QR code and you are already on the Forum page, where you can introduce yourself and meet others. A generous dastarkhan was laid out for the guests and participants. Therefore, the forum continued after a short pause.

Companies that care about sustainable development goals

Compliance and Sustainability Director of Air Astana JSC Yulia Lim on the path to decarbonization. Given that the biggest share of emissions is generated during flights (99%), the company has identified a number of measures, the implementation of which will contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions from operations in the first place.

It should be noted that Air Astana is one of the sponsors, thanks to which this forum took place. And we were pleased that despite this the company did not come empty-handed. The students who correctly answered Ms. Lim's questions received memorable prizes.

Aigul Tagatova, Director of Social Entrepreneurship Programs at the Eurasia Foundation of Central Asia, spoke next. We are proud of the fact that this speaker received his second higher education within the walls of our university. Ms. Tagatova told where and how the NGO can get funding.

The turn of the Chairman of the Board of Kazakhstan Stock Exchange JSC Alina Aldambergen has come. The exchange consistently promotes issues of sustainable development, transparency and raising the principles of responsible investment. Conducts events for issuers with the involvement of international experts from IFC, PwC, Ernst & Young and others to clarify ESG disclosure issues. And they delighted the participants by presenting prizes.

Sports, compassion and two twin brothers

Well-known athlete Valikhan Ten shared the history of the Almaty Marathon. He ignited the audience, there were many questions. After a portion of motivation, listeners experienced a different spectrum of emotion. After all, the Asar-Ume Charitable Foundation, represented by Serik Kambarbaev, entered the stage.

The Youth Forum gave food for thought, motivated and finally touched the strings of the soul. However, our organizers were more and more surprised by the quality and coolness of the speakers. Representatives of Tiktok Yolo house Askhat Khalimov and Azat Khalimov went beyond the forum and gave precise recommendations on the development of Tiktok on the spot. It is worth noting that the guys showed the initiative to perform a master class in the future. The University is happy to cooperate. Indeed, Tiktok is a powerful tool for popularizing any idea.

Barys Yurt Club held a presentation of the NFT project, created to protect the population of snow leopards in Kazakhstan. The most interesting thing is that some of our students turned out to be active participants in this community. It certainly pleases the races. After all, the guys are doing a charity project. Their goal is to help preserve such a rare population of snow leopards, a true symbol of our country.

AlmaU is a truly high-quality, positive community where anyone can express an opinion, find support and like-minded people. Thanks to the organizer of the event, director of the Center for Sustainable Development and ESG AlmaU Nurgaliyev Ainar and his students! Thanks to you, our society will develop steadily.

Special thanks to our sponsors represented by Air Astana, Huawei, Yummy maki, Aqua rossa! Thanks to you ideas come true.