Locations30 years close to nature: the people of Kokshetau national park
September 18, 2026
Kokshetau State National Park
For thousands of visitors, the lakes of Kokshetau National Park are a place to spend the summer. For Zholdaskan Karabayev and his colleagues, the park’s forests and lakes are the work of a lifetime.
“No one comes to nature conservation by accident, people come here because they feel called to it,”— Zholdaskan Karabayev.
Karabayev began his career in forestry in 2001 and has served as director of Kokshetau National Park since 2025. Over 25 years in the field, he has witnessed forest fires, encountered poaching and come to know firsthand just how demanding the work of nature conservation can be.
Zholdaskan Karabaev has spent 25 years working in the forestry sector. He believes people come here not for the money, but because of their personal values.
Kazakhstan has relatively low forest cover, making every hectare valuable. Today, one of the main priorities for Karabayev and his colleagues is to preserve the forest. The park has five branches, each with a nursery where young trees are grown to help restore the forest.
Zholdaskan Karabayev considers the fact that the forest has not only been preserved but expanded one of the park’s major achievements over its 30-year history. In recent years, the park has experienced no major forest fires or unauthorized logging. At the same time, scientific monitoring of the park’s lakes continues with specialists studying water composition, aquatic plants and algae.
But Karabayev’s story is only one of many. Over 30 years, Kokshetau National Park has brought together generations of people for whom its forests and lakes have become part of their lives: foresters, scientists, inspectors and schoolchildren. Some have devoted decades to the park, some joined more recently, while others are only beginning their journey.
Kokshetau National Park spans two regions - Akmola and North Kazakhstan - and covers 182,000 hectares.
Forest Passed Down Through Generations
For some of the staff of the national park, their connection to this forest began long before they came to work here.
Kushpai Bukanov, director of the Zerendi branch, is a third-generation forester. He began his career as a state forest inspector, then worked as a forest ranger, a forest protection engineer and a chief forester. He has headed the branch for the past 15 years and has spent 44 years working in forestry.
“From childhood, I would travel through the forests with my father and help him with his work. That is how I developed a love for nature. I started out in a school forestry programme at my school in the village of Krasny Kordon, where we still work with children today,”— Kushpai Bukanov.
44 years in forestry: for Kushpai Bukanov, the forest is more than a job - it’s part of a family tradition.
Alexander Matveyev has worked in the park for eight years. His uncle was a forester. At the Shalkar branch of the Kokshetau national park, he works to protect the forest from diseases and pests. For Alexander, protecting the forest is a way to leave something valuable behind for the next generation.
Lyudmila Nazarova also works at the Shalkar branch. She is is a forest regeneration and afforestation engineer and lives in the village of Lobanovo. Her father worked as a mechanic at the national park for 40 years. Lyudmila did not join the park straight away: she previously worked at a local college and joined the park after it closed.
“I have an interesting job — I help restore forests. We grow pine and birch trees, which are then planted,”— Lyudmila Nazarova.
Lyudmila and Alexandr work at the Shalkar branch of the park and live in nearby villages.
Protecting the forest: from radios to thermal imaging
Over the past three decades, the tools used to protect the park’s forests have changed and so has the work of the state inspectors responsible for them.
Since 2024, the national park has had an early fire detection system in place. Today, 18 cameras monitor around 182,000 hectares of the park’s territory.
Meirkhan Gabdullin, chief engineer for the protection and conservation of natural complexes, walks us through how the system works. The cameras are positioned at elevated points across the park, with the highest one standing at around 600 metres above sea level. Their thermal imaging technology can detect a fire from dozens of kilometres away, before smoke becomes visible to the naked eye.
When an alert comes in, an operator at the central office contacts the operator at the relevant branch. Inspectors can then be dispatched to the site.
“The most important thing is to contain a fire as quickly as possible. It used to be different: an inspector would be on duty with a radio, essentially trying to figure out where a fire might have started without being able to see it,”— Meirkhan Gabdullin.
The technology matters even more as the climate becomes less predictable, with strong winds and lightning adding to the risk of wildfires. In summer, at the height of the tourist season, each branch has between 100 and 200 people working alongside its permanent staff: inspectors, fire watch personnel and seasonal workers.
The park’s early fire detection system operates 24/7, monitoring the entire national park.
In recent years, the park’s equipment and infrastructure have also been significantly upgraded. 17 firefighting vehicles and more than 10 tractors have been added to its fleet. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Kazakhstan has contributed as well, providing the park with a tracked tractor and forest patrol equipment.
For a park stretching across hundreds of thousands of hectares, this is more than equipment. It is part of the everyday toolkit that allows its staff to protect and care for the forest.
The Next Generation of Forest Stewards
Today, that tradition of caring for the forest is being passed on to a new generation.
At the school forestry programme run by the Zerendi branch alone, around 20 children take part. They plant trees, make feeders for birds and other animals, and join the national park’s environmental activities.
Ainur Sharipova, an environmental education specialist, has been working with schoolchildren for several years and knows what captures their attention. Her work extends well beyond a single school: she conducts environmental education sessions at around 20 rural schools across the district.
The school forestry programme at the Zerendi branch is part of the national park’s long-standing environmental education work.
At the school in the village of Krasny Kordon, environmental education begins as early as primary school. The school grounds are home to seven small tree nurseries and a greenhouse.
For Nazira, a ninth-grader, environmental education is an essential part of growing up. For her classmate Aiym, it is an opportunity to explore environmental issues through hands-on experience. She has taken part in research projects and received a certificate of recognition from the Minister of Ecology.
“For me, this is about more than just the environment. People my age still do not fully understand the harm caused by litter. I think bloggers and other public figures should talk more about protecting nature and the environment, because young people look up to them,”— Ayim says.
Aiyym and Nazira are students at Krasny Kordon School and both are members of the school forestry class.
The litter Aiym talks about is something park staff encounter every tourist season. Visitors leave waste along the lakeshores, while noise and loud music can become a serious source of disturbance for animals and birds. For the national park, environmental education is therefore not simply an addition to conservation work - it is part of conservation itself.
The Lakes That Need Watching
If the forest is one of the main symbols of Kokshetau National Park, its lakes are its calling card.
Their condition has been studied for many years by Yerlan Zhumai, an ichthyologist and PhD who joined the national park in 2004.
Today, specialists are paying particular attention to Zerendi Lake. Over the past five years, its water level has risen significantly, causing flooding along nearby streets and beaches, while trees along the shoreline have begun to dry out. Without proper attention, the lake risks turning into a marsh. Its condition is already being affected by the proximity of settlements, the spread of reeds and bulrushes, and the growing number of recreational areas along the shoreline without a unified sewage system.
For the park, one of the challenges is therefore to develop tourism without harming the very nature that draws people here.
“Water is one of the most valuable resources on Earth, so our task is to preserve it. Kazakhstan is not a country rich in water,”— says Yerlan Zhumai, recalling a Kazakh proverb: “Even water is in demand.”
According to Erlan Zhumai, research and regular monitoring of Lake Zerendinskoye are essential for tracking changes and forecasting their potential impacts.
“To make the right decisions, we need to understand what is happening to our water bodies. The national park does not specialise in this area, while carrying out scientific research is a costly undertaking,”— scientist explains.
Kazakhstan has limited water resources, with per-capita water availability below the level the United Nations considers indicative of water scarcity. According to the World Resources Institute, by 2050, 31 percent of the world’s population will face severe water stress. This makes local research, such as the work being carried out at Zerendi Lake, part of a broader challenge.
The national park is now addressing this challenge together with the United Nations Development Programme in Kazakhstan through the FOLUR initiative, which is implemented with financial support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
Since 2025, comprehensive studies have been carried out in the park with UNDP support. Specialists are examining the lake’s hydrochemical composition, the condition of aquatic plants and algae, the lake’s biological resources, and trees along the shoreline.
Through this work, the national park has access to specialised expertise, modern methods and equipment, as well as international best practices for monitoring wetlands.
Zarendi lake in Kokshetau National Park.
More tourists, greater responsibility
The lakes are drawing more and more visitors. More than 100,000 people came to Shalkar this year alone - making it a rival to its better-known neighbour, Burabay, in terms of visitor numbers.
Dulat Orumbayev, director of the Shalkar branch, has worked in the forestry sector since 2005. He was introduced to the field by his older brothers, who had also built their careers in forestry.
Dulat Orumbayev: tourism should work for nature, not against It.
Today, more than 130 people work at the branch, including seasonal staff. Most come from nearby villages: Lobanovo, Imantau, Aiyrtau and Shalkar. As salaries in the sector have increased, young people have also started returning, while women, who were once far less represented in conservation work, are increasingly choosing to join the field.
Orumbayev describes the area as unique. It is home to four natural monuments, including Aiyrtau Hill, whose summit offers views across almost half of the branch’s territory, as well as Shalkar lake itself.
The growing flow of visitors has also called for new solutions. Two automated checkpoints have been installed at the entrance to the branch, allowing visitors to pay for entry remotely or by QR code on site.
“We are not against tourism, but it has to be sustainable tourism — tourism that is focused on preserving nature,”— says Dulat Orumbayev.
All visitors to the Shalkar branch pass through this checkpoint, where the entry fee can be paid online or by scanning a QR code.
At the Zerendi branch, a visitor centre has been operating since it opened in 2022. The centre’s work is overseen by Danar Zikrina, an engineer specialising in recreation and tourism. She chose the profession deliberately and sees her role as helping to develop ecotourism.
“There are many beautiful places in the national park, and there is a lot of potential if we develop ecotourism,”— says Danar Zikrina.
At the visitor centre, guests can learn about the rules for visiting the park, discover its plants and wildlife, and choose a hiking route. Among the plans for the near future are cycling and walking trails. The park already has observation decks and equipped camping areas with cabins.
The visitor centre at the Zerendi branch opened in 2022 and is where visitors begin their journey through the park.
At the visitor centre, guests can learn about the rules for visiting the park, discover its plants and wildlife, and choose a hiking route. Among the plans for the near future are cycling and walking trails. The park already has observation decks and equipped camping areas with cabins.
Visitors are increasingly coming not only from neighbouring regions but also from abroad, including Germany.
At the Arykbalyk branch, tourism around Imantau lake is only beginning to gain momentum. Branch director Marat Akkushkarov says the park is gradually developing its infrastructure with its own resources. A new sanitary facility for visitors, for example, was recently built.
At the same time, staff are working to encourage visitors to treat nature with care, handing out leaflets asking them not to leave waste behind or play loud music.
“People are drawn here by our lakes and pine forests. Visitors come from other regions, even from Mangystau. Imantau lake itself covers about 6,000 hectares and is surrounded by forests inhabited by deer, roe deer, wild boar and martens. Swans and wild ducks can also be seen on the water,” — Marat Akkushkarov says.
Four forest districts and more than 53,000 hectares make up the area managed by the Arykbalyk branch.
What We Leave Behind
Not every part of the park is open to visitors.
On Tasaral Island, in the middle of Imantau lake, ecologist Aigul Khamitova points out Cossack juniper - a rare relict plant that helps hold the soil together and protects the island from erosion. Tasaral is designated as a natural monument of national significance, meaning that tourism and any activity that could harm the ecosystem are prohibited. The island remains, above all, a place for nature and scientific research.
Aigul Khamitova has worked at the park since 2007. For her, protecting nature is a way of leaving something behind for those who come after.
“I want to preserve our nature for future generations, so that our descendants can see this beauty,”— says Aigul Khamitova.
On Tasaral Island, Aigul Khamitova points out Cossack juniper, a rare plant that helps hold the soil in place.
Over the past 30 years, Kokshetau National Park has grown and changed. New technologies for forest protection have been introduced, along with nurseries, tourist routes, visitor centres and scientific research. With support from its partners, including GEF financing and UNDP support, the national park has been able to strengthen its equipment and infrastructure, train its staff and carry out research on its water bodies.
But at the heart of this story are people.
There is Yerlan Zhumai, for whom concern about Lake Zerendi has become the work of a lifetime.
There is Zholdaskan Karabaev, for whom protecting nature has been a lifelong professional commitment.
There is Aigul Khamitova, who wants “our descendants to see this beauty.”
And there are the children of Krasny Kordon, who may one day tell this story in their own words.
Zerendi Lake is one of the gems of Kokshetau National Park.
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