The natural wonders of Koytendag are planned to be included in the UNESCO list

A hybrid-format meeting was held at the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan with the participation of representatives of the Michael Succow Foundation for the Protection of Nature, Conservation X Labs, the Slovak Speleological Society, Humboldt University of Berlin, the National Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan on Ecology and Climate Change, the Institute of Zoology of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the National Commission of Turkmenistan for UNESCO, the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan, and the National Institute of Deserts, Flora and Fauna.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the preparation of the nomination dossier entitled “Karsts, Canyons and Caves of Koytendag” for its inclusion as a transnational UNESCO World Natural Heritage site, the current status of the roadmap for nominating the property, and the results of field expeditions.

International experts presented the findings of field expeditions conducted in the Koytendag and Surkhan State Nature Reserves in the spring of 2026. Photographs of dinosaur footprints from other countries included on the UNESCO World Heritage List were shown and compared with those found in Turkmenistan.

Photographs of caves in Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan that are of major importance for their international recognition were also presented.

The participants discussed in detail the preparation of the preliminary assessment request, including the delimitation of the property’s boundaries, the identification of its key features and attributes, the analysis of major threats, management issues, and the procedure for coordinating the documents and submitting them to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.