LocationsYerzhan: equal opportunities for forest protection
September 14, 2023
Yerzhan Kelemseitov has been protecting forests in Kazakhstan for more than 15 years.
He works as a forestry expert in the Zharkent forestry and he is ensuring the protection of forest of assigned to him area from fires and other threats. In addition to patrolling the area, Yerzhan helps in forest restoration by cultivating seedlings and seedlings in the forest nursery.
Yerzhan calls his work a vocation in which his family and friends support him.
Despite his diagnosis - cerebral palsy, Yerzhan believes that everyone has equal rights and opportunities to protect forests and biodiversity.
Forests on the territory of Zharkent forestry cover an area of over 60,000 ha. They are important to sustain life of the region and help to fight against land degradation and desertification.
Forestry is the habitat of such rare Red List species of animals as the snow leopard, the Semirechensk salamander and is also the territory of migration of the gazelle.
UNDP, with the support of the Global Environment Facility is working on the conservation and restoration of forests in Kazakhstan.
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