The Altai Project is a new project at Center for Safe Energy. We are striving to protect the natural and cultural heritage of this uniquely diverse, mountainous region of southern Siberia.

The goals of the Altai Project are:
- nature conservation,
- promoting renewable energy and environmentally sustainable housing design, and
- supporting indigenous organizations in their efforts to restore and protect their traditional lands and lifeways.

About the Alt

The Altai Region is in the southern corner of South-Central Siberia

The Altai links Russia with Kazakhstan, China, and Mongolia, and is home to ethnic Russians, Muslims, and indigenous people of many tribes. It contains a UNESCO World Heritage Site, 6 federally protected territories, 120 natural monuments, and a growing number of regionally designated nature parks.

The global significance of the area is indisputable. The Altai's ancient monuments-burial mounds, petroglyphs, Scythian standing stones erected centuries ago-are not only a fundamental part of local indigenous culture, but can also be a source of inspiration and education.

The wild river valleys and snow-capped peaks, habitat for snow leopards, Argali sheep, and other threatened species, serve as a rare remnant of nearly untouched mountain wilderness territory.

The Spiritual-Environmental Charter of the Altai-Sayan Region, agreed upon in 2000 by scientists, governmental and non-governmental organizations from all four countries (Russia, Kazakhstan, China, and Mongolia), states:

“The Altai-Sayan region, situated in the exact center of the Eurasian continent and inhabited by the key ethnic groups of Eurasia, is its geopolitical, ethnocultural and biospheric heart.

The Katun River flows through the Altai Region

By and large, the future of the Earth’s entire civilization depends on the region’s destiny in the 21st century and the collaboration of the peoples dwelling here.” We are proud to be involved in the historic work of these remarkable peoples.