On November 23-24, 2017, an international scientific conference devoted to the 25th anniversary of the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination of Central Asia was held in Tashkent. State bodies from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan were present, as well as various international organizations, large financial institutions, scientists and experts.
The parallel sessions on various topics relating to the water sectors of Central Asian countries were introduced at the conference. One such session was presented by youth from Central Asia, where young scientists, students of the Tashkent institute of irrigation, agricultural mechanization engineers, TIIAME of Uzbekistan, and representatives of the GKU took part, along with representatives of the Youth Union of Uzbekistan.
The Central Asian Youth Forum, CAYFWater, was also represented at this session by young scientists Aibek Samakov and Abdikayim Zhienbek. Both presented very important and interesting research topics: The "Social life" of the river: a history of the environment, social worlds and conflict resolution along the Naryn-Syrdarya river, and Sustainable water resources and management of agriculture using an environmental life cycle assessment.
The second part of the session was very interactive with a rather unusual approach. For discussing the themes of water issues, the participants were divided into five teams of 4-5 people where they discussed certain issues. To do this, the teams were provided with all the necessary handouts (banner, felt-tip pens and stickers), as well as various topics for discussion. The main topics covered in this group were: cross-border cooperation, water and ecology, water education, water diplomacy, and green growth. Within these topics, it was necessary to identify the possible impact and participation of young people.
Thanks to this approach, the participants became very friendly, which is a main priority for approaching the common case for regulation and use of water.