Real growth. Real challenges. Real people.

The INNOVATE SHAKARIM UNIVERSITY forum, held on May 4, 2025, was more than a set of events — it served as an intellectual mirror of the region’s challenges and future solutions. Over 4,500 participants and guests visited Shakarim University that day, including high school graduates, college students, master’s applicants, researchers, businesspeople, and international experts.

INNOVATE has become a platform for regional relaunch. A new level begins here.

One of the forum’s inspiring participants was the team of the “Forest Resources and Wildlife Management” educational program from the Research School of Veterinary and Agriculture, led by program manager Gulnara Dzhamanova.

“We wanted to showcase the potential of our amazing nature,” Gulnara shared. “We harvest wild forest herbs from the reserve territory. Here, you can see our signature forest teas: energizing, calming, immune-boosting.”

These products are more than just a display of the region’s natural wealth — students are turning their field research into startup projects ready for implementation.

“We are looking for sponsors and openly declaring our readiness to promote our technologies at the regional level,” Dzhamanova emphasized. “What’s important to us is that young people stay here, in their own region. It’s here that they find opportunities that don’t exist in the big cities.”

Gulnara also noted their close collaboration with international scientific and educational institutions. This first large-scale forum clearly demonstrated that the region’s potential is real — and it’s being shaped in university labs, in field expeditions, and in the ideas of young scientists.