The cold winter – also referred to as temperate – deserts, spreading from northern Iran across Central Asia to Mongolia – are globally outstanding nature regions. They are an important migration area for birds and the last wild herds of ungulates, such as the Saiga antelope. The enormous land masses deliver a broad range of ecosystem services.

Despite their ecological importance, temperate deserts are, according to a study by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), one of the least recognized biomes worldwide. Yet, these deserts, their habitats and species are threatened by desertification caused by overexploitation for firewood collection, inappropriate grazing practices, and large-scale infrastructure development.

95% of the temperate deserts are located in Central Asia – hence this region carries a high responsibility for the preservation of this biome. Against this background, the Central Asian Desert Initiative (CADI) aims at preserving biological diversity and the conservation and sustainable use of cold winter deserts in Central Asia. Therefore, in close coordination with local partners, a wide package of measures was implemented in the main target countries Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

CADI was jointly implemented by the University of Greifswald (Germany), the Michael Succow Foundation (Greifswald, Germany) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Sub-regional Office for Central Asia (Ankara, Turkey). The project ended in July 2022.