Special Issue on Green Sustainability in Tajikistan: Bridging Science, Policy, and Community Action

I. Context

Tajikistan, a predominantly mountainous country with over 90% of its territory covered by high-altitude landscapes, serves as the primary water tower for Central Asia. Its alpine glaciers—concentrated in the Pamir Mountains and western Tianshan Mountains—feed the headwaters of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya. These transboundary river systems collectively irrigate 85% of the region's farmland, drive hydroelectric generation, and sustain fragile arid ecosystems.

Nevertheless, accelerated glacial retreat, accompanied by unsustainable irrigation practices and climate-driven extreme weather events, now threatens regional water security, endangers biodiversity, and exacerbates socio-economic vulnerabilities in this mountainous country.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 15 (Life on Land), and SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), underscore the need for integrated approaches to conserve water resources, protect biodiversity, and promote sustainable development in fragile mountain regions.

This Special Issue invites cutting-edge research on Tajikistan’s water resources, biodiversity conservation, and their linkages with sustainable development. It seeks to foster interdisciplinary collaboration among scientists, policymakers, and local stakeholders to develop adaptive management strategies and equitable governance frameworks.

II. Topics

The topics of the Special Issue include but are not limited to the following:

(1) Water resource dynamics in Tajikistan under climate change, including glacier retreat, river flow variability, and groundwater depletion;

(2) Biodiversity conservation in mountain ecosystems, focusing on endemic and endangered species, habitat degradation, and ecosystem services;

(3) Water resources utilization and transboundary water governance: Balancing energy needs, aquatic ecosystem health, and regional cooperation;

(4) Socio-economic vulnerabilities and community-based adaptation strategies in water- and biodiversity-dependent regions;

(5) Sustainable land use practices, including agroecology, pasture management, and reforestation to enhance ecosystem resilience;

(6) Policy and institutional frameworks aligning with the SDGs to promote integrated water-biodiversity-sustainability solutions;

(7) Technological innovations (e.g., remote sensing, modeling, AI) for monitoring water resources and biodiversity changes.

III. Important deadlines:

• Submission Opens: 1 May 2025
• Submission Deadline: 31 August 2025
• First Decision: 30 November 2025
• Expected Publication: December 2025 or June 2026

IV. Submission instructions:

Please carefully read and follow the Guide for Authors before submitting. All articles should be submitted online, please select SI: Green Sustainability in Tajikistan on submission.

V. Guest Editor in Chief:

• Yuanming Zhang, Director General of Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China (E-mail: zhangym@ms.xjb.ac.cn)

• Khushvakhtzoda Kobiljon Khushvakht, President of the National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan, Tajikistan (E-mail: kobil_barfiev@mail.ru)

  Guest Editors:

• Ali R Fazylov, professor of the laboratory "Hydraulic Engineering Structures" of Institute of Water Problems, Hydropower and Ecology of National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan, Tajikistan (E-mail: alifazilov53@gmail.com) 

• Andrei Korolyuk, professor of Central Siberian Botanical Garden, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia (E-mail: akorolyuk@rambler.ru)

• Daoyuan Zhang, professor of Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China (E-mail: Zhangdy@ms.xjb.ac.cn)

• Georgy Lazkov, professor of Department of Institute of Biology at National Academy of Sciences, Kyrgyzstan (E-mail: glazkov1963@mail.ru)

• Keping Ma, professor of Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China (E-mail: kpma@ibcas.ac.cn)

• Khabibullo Shomurodov, professor of Institute of Botany, Uzbekistan (E-mail: h.shomurodov@mail.ru)

• Roman Jashenko, professor of Institute of Zoology of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan (E-mail: romajashenko@yahoo.com)

• Sheralizoda Nazrialo, professor of the State Scientific Institution "Center for Glacier Research" of the National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan, Tajikistan (E-mail: nazrialo@mail.ru)

• Weili Duan, professor of Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China (E-mail: duanweili@ms.xjb.ac.cn)

• Yaoming Ma, professor of Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China (E-mail: ymma@itpcas.ac.cn)