Category: Kazakhstan
The Caspian Sea Is Retreating. Central Asia Is Not Ready
Support Novastan, the European Central Asia magazine By supporting Novastan, you are supporting the only English, French and German-language media specialising in Central Asia. We’re independent and we need your… [...]
More Women in Central Asian Politics – But Where Is the Power?
Support Novastan, the European Central Asia magazine By supporting Novastan, you are supporting the only English, French and German-language media specialising in Central Asia. We’re independent and we need your… [...]
The Vocabulary of Reform: Why Central Asia Is Reimagining Its Political Traditions
From Kazakhstan’s Kurultai to Uzbekistan’s Mahalla, governments across Central Asia are increasingly framing political reform through institutions rooted in local history rather than imported political models. For much… [...]
Kazakhstan’s Next Elections: Between Reform and Managed Competition
Kazakhstan’s next parliamentary elections are unlikely to determine who governs the country. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s political dominance is not seriously in question. Yet the vote matters because it will… [...]
Money, boxes and absent men: the hidden economy reshaping Central Asia
At Central Asian airports, remittances do not always look like money. They can look like taped cardboard boxes arriving from Istanbul, oversized suitcases from Moscow, bags of clothes bought… [...]
Support Novastan, the European Central Asia magazine
By supporting Novastan, you are supporting the only English, French and German-language media specialising in Central Asia. We're independent and we need your help to stay that way!
Almira Saifullina: “The steppe is an archive of violence, memory and silence”
Documentary filmmaker and visual anthropologist Almira Saifullina explores how landscapes preserve traces of Soviet violence, forced displacement and family memory. In this interview with Novastan, she discusses her new… [...]
What lies beneath Central Asia? Rare earths, critical minerals and the new race for resources
Central Asia is often described as the next frontier in the global race for rare earths. The reality is both more promising and more complicated. Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and their… [...]
“I only needed a passport” : In Ukraine, Central Asian prisoners of wars caught between loyalty and regret
Citizens from Central Asia now represent the largest group of foreign nationals fighting in the Russian army. Novastan spoke with several of them after their capture by Ukrainian forces. [...]
Between Extended Family and Personal Boundaries: How Parenting is Changing in Kazakhstan
Every year on June 1st, Kazakhstan celebrates International Children’s Day. In many cities, it is marked with concerts, theater performances, and free activities for children. For families, it is… [...]
Rinat Bekchintaev: “Almaty has an authentic cinematic image that cannot be repeated anywhere else”
From Almaty to Moscow and Paris, filmmaker and editor Rinat Bekchintaev has built a creative identity shaped by movement, memory and displacement. In this interview with Novastan, he discusses… [...]
In Kazakhstan, the futuristic city of “Alatau” reaches a new milestone with special status
Presented as a future major technological and economic hub, the city of Alatau in Kazakhstan is entering a new phase of institutional structuring after obtaining special status, amid persistent… [...]
Overview of environmental issues in Kazakhstan
Like many countries, Kazakhstan is facing major environmental problems. Kazakh media outlet The Village has listed the environmental issues most frequently discussed in the country. Kazakhstan continues to… [...]