A key direction at the YuSU celebrates the Ecologist's Day!

Today is the Ecologist's Day in Russia. It is celebrated in our country annually on World Environment Day - June 5. The Ecologist's Day in Russia was established by the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin on July 21, 2007 on the initiative of the Ecology Committee of the State Duma of the Russian Federation.

At YuSU environmental direction is one of the key vectors of the university development. Thus, the university will be the first in Western Siberia to register a natural-climatic project on carbon units assessment.

Now 350 students are studying at the Higher School of Ecology of the University. Passionate about science, the students are involved in Student Scientific Society, EcoGeoKart group of the Laboratory of Geoinformatics and Natural Resources Monitoring, present their scientific papers at conferences and forums, participate in eco-actions. Students master their skills in the training and research laboratory of applied ecology. Here they learn to measure meteorological characteristics, conduct mini-express analysis of the urban environment, waste water treatment, and use a microscope in project-research activities.

HSE employees implement the EcoClasses project in Yugra schools and organize an open regional competition of research projects for schoolchildren “Yugra. Ecology. Talents”, which won grants from the Governor of Yugra.

Since 2008, a UNESCO Chair has been opened in Yugra State University on the basis of the Research and Education Center (REC) “Environmental Dynamics and Global Climate Change”. Scientists conduct research at the international field station “Mukhrino”. The REC includes the Laboratory of Ecosystem-Atmospheric Connections of Forest-Marsh Complexes. There they analyze the composition of carbon. We would like to add that the YuSU scientists are actively working on the implementation of the most important innovation project of state importance of the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia, participate in the implementation of the federal project “Carbon polygons” of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia.

“We are implementing the Carbon Data Center project in the region, which will include five monitoring sites. Two sites are already functioning - they are “Mukhrino” and “Kondinskie Lakes”. Three more sites will be opened in the near future - Salym, Numto and Samotlor. This has become possible thanks to our industrial partners,” noted Roman Kuchin, Rector of YuSU.

The Youth Laboratory of Geoinformatics of Ecosystems also operates at YuSU. It was opened within the framework of the national project “Science and Universities”. The laboratory staff creates a geoinformation system (GIS), including by means of UAVs, which allows estimating the value of carbon balance components in typical forest and swamp ecosystems of the middle taiga of Western Siberia, creates mathematical models, and is engaged in forest taxation. For more than three years of its existence the laboratory has formed a young team of scientists, created a technological base for the use of UAVs in ecological research in Yugra, created technologies, prepared methods for studying the ecology of the region using remote sensing methods and mathematical models.

Yugra also has a Molecular Genetic Laboratory, which was also created within the framework of the national project “Science and Universities” with the support of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science. Scientists are developing a methodology of metagenomic analysis for rapid assessment of environmental impact under conditions of intensive subsoil use. Many thousands of mushroom collections are stored there, new species are discovered and DNA is decoded.

Soils are also studied at YuSU. This is done in the laboratory of ecological soil science, where physical and chemical studies of soils and soil substrates are conducted.