How to Transform Aral Sea into City of Revival

At the 5th Congress of Architects ARCHICA 2024 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Architect Maxim Oltyan unveiled an ambitious $100 billion initiative to transform the Aral Sea into a City of Revival.

This visionary project seeks to restore the sea, develop sustainable infrastructure, promote tourism and foster innovative industries in the region.

The initiative, which has been in development since 2010, is designed to combat the severe ecological crisis in the area and revitalise the local economy. Oltyan emphasised that the project goes beyond environmental restoration, aiming to reshape societal mindsets and promote sustainable development.

The initiative also addresses Uzbekistan’s water management challenges, calling for comprehensive reforms to improve water use efficiency.

The project’s financial potential was highlighted, with Oltyan pointing out that the $100 billion price tag represents only 20% of the capital of a single individual like Elon Musk.

Kazakhstan’s successful efforts to revive the Small Aral Sea have set a precedent for collaborative environmental restoration across the region, opening new opportunities for large-scale initiatives. With the evolving political landscape in Uzbekistan and the influx of young talent into government positions, the stage is set for the realisation of this transformative project.

Kursiv Uzbekistan also reports that the inflow in Aral Sea has exceeded the previous year’s by five times.