Leyla Aliyeva Urges Caspian Sea Protection at COP31
Leyla Aliyeva called for international cooperation to address declining Caspian Sea water levels and discussed biodiversity restoration projects during the COP31 climate conference.
During the 31st session of the UN Climate Change Conference in Antalya, Leyla Aliyeva, Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and head of the IDEA Public Union, led a series of initiatives focused on environmental conservation and biodiversity.
At the event "A Sea in Retreat: Climate, Nature and People on the Caspian Frontline," Aliyeva urged international cooperation and scientific research to combat the retreating water levels of the Caspian Sea. She warned that the decline threatens rare species, including sturgeons and Caspian seals. Aliyeva highlighted the IDEA Public Union's ongoing efforts, which include fish stock replenishment, scientific expeditions, and coastal cleanup campaigns that have removed over 120 tons of waste since 2011.
Aliyeva also conducted site visits to the Uzbekistan pavilion and a joint pavilion established by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and Türkiye's Zero Waste Foundation. In a meeting with Manuel Pulgar-Vidal of the World Wide Fund for Nature, she discussed joint projects to protect the Caucasian leopard and restore populations of European bison and gazelles in Azerbaijan. These discussions, held alongside experts from the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, focused on the broader impacts of climate change on natural ecosystems.
