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The Dangers of the Metal Smelting Plant in Yeraskh (Armenia) Mitigating Environmental Transboundary Impact Through International law
Nazrin Baghirova and Anar Gojayev
27 September 2023
Although metal production/mining industries are linked to the economic benefits, their activities are significantly resource- and energy-intensive, which means that emit pollutants and greenhouse gasses in a way that adversely affects the environment. This IDD Analytic Policy Paper describes the transboundary impact on Azerbaijan caused by a smelting plant located in Yeraskh, Armenia, which is very close to Azerbaijan’s border. It then provides policy recommendations on ways to mitigate the regional environmental hazards deriving from this activity from the point of view of the international law.
Should Desalination Play a Role in Azerbaijan’s Water Security Strategy?
Hajar Huseynova
20 September 2023
Azerbaijan’s freshwater resources are limited with medium to high water stress index and huge dependency (70 percent) on upstream countries. Currently the country is in the process of rearranging its water resources management and reconsidering traditional approaches to ensure the sustainability of its freshwater resources.
Solid Waste Management Practices in Azerbaijan: Current Conditions and Ways Forward
By Hajar Huseynova
07 September 2023
Solid waste management from the different perspectives; current state policy and plans with regards to solid waste management in Azerbaijan; current and previous practices and lessons learned; different waste management business practices, challenges they face, and ways to overcome them; global practices in solid waste management.
Strengthening Environmental Education in Azerbaijan
By Parvana Babayeva
01 September 2023
Azerbaijan’s system of environmental education is at a pivotal point where we can capitalize on the nation’s distinctive biodiversity and cultural legacy to build an informed and involved citizenry. At the moment, academic instruction of basic theoretical concepts constitutes the majority of environmental education. This curriculum needs to be broadened and strengthened immediately if we are to address more successfully contemporary environmental issues like biodiversity loss, pollution, and climate change.
The Dost Agropark as Knowledge Corridor. Developing High-Level Skills for New Digital Agriculture
Nazrin Baghirova
27 July 2023
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) defines “smart farming” as a farming management concept using modern technology—including sensors and actuators, geo-positioning systems, big data, and unmanned aerial vehicles— to increase the quantity and quality of agricultural products, increase production per farmer, and become a climate-resilient and resource-efficient producer.
Improving Women’s Access to Justice in Azerbaijan
By Mae Walsh-Zamanbayova
22 June 2023
Unfortunately, violence against women remains a common occurrence worldwide. Therefore, improving women’s access to justice is key to advancing gender equality in any country. In Azerbaijan, although some important steps have been taken in recent years, there is still much road to travel to ensure that the justice system optimally protects women and girls. This IDD analytical policy brief will provide a brief overview of the current legislation and initiatives before recommending improvements and solutions toward advancing women’s access to justice.
Solid Waste Management in Azerbaijan: Completing the Integrated Waste Management System
By Hajar Huseynova
07 June 2023
Population growth, economic development, and urbanization are leading to an increasing amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) and overall waste worldwide, including in Azerbaijan. The improper management of MSW poses significant public health and environmental risks. The accumulation of waste negatively impacts the soil and adjacent water bodies; it also contributes to water-borne diseases while degrading water quality. Moreover, MSW releases methane gases, which have a warming power more than 25 times greater than carbon dioxide.
CASPISNET Scientific brief: latest developments
By Elnur Safarov
24 May 2023
The first quarterly scientific brief by CASPISNET under its new arrangement with the Institute for Development and Diplomacy (IDD).
Establishing Agricultural Sustainability Degrees and Providing Extension Services: A Next Step in Azerbaijan’s Education Reforms
By Nazrin Baghirova
11 May 2023
One of the crucial aspects of achieving the SDGs is education. Despite documents like the Paris Agreement (Article 12) and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (Article 6), recognizing that “education, training, and skills development are fundamental for all Parties to achieve sustainable development in the long term,” academia is largely absent from national climate policy discussions in Azerbaijan. This IDD Analytic Policy Paper will examine how the country can more fully integrate climate action and sustainable development in the field of agriculture into university curricula. This would ultimately benefit producers and, thus, the country as a whole.
The Mismatch between the Labor Market and Education Outputs in Azerbaijan: What Can Business Do?
By Anar Valiyev, Gulsabah Amirova, Lala Mammadova, Chinara Alasgarova
10 May 2023
This analytic policy brief will examine the underlying reasons for what we call the mismatch between the labor market and education outputs in Azerbaijan. It will then suggest possible ways to help businesses overcome this challenge.
Reversing the Impact of Brain Drain in Azerbaijan
By Mae Walsh-Zamanbayova
25 April 2023
This brief will ultimately argue that Azerbaijan should capitalize on the globalization of the workforce and the growing trend of remote working that has occurred in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The UN Water Conference and Azerbaijan
By Hajar Huseynova
14 April 2023
After almost 50 years, the first UN Water Conference of the twenty-first century took place in New York in mid-March 2023, co-hosted by the Netherlands and Tajikistan. Although water is an essential common good and the achievement of all the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) depend directly or indirectly on water, it has not received the necessary attention on this scale for years.
Azerbaijan’s Current Water Resource and Supply Perspective
By Mae Walsh-Zamanbayova
07 April 2023
This document summarizes a roundtable discussion led by Rovshan Abbasov, the Director of Khazar University’s Department of Geography and Environment. The discussion took place on 31 March 2023 at ADA University under the auspices of the Institute for Development and Diplomacy (IDD), which was hosted by IDD Director Dr. Fariz Ismailzade.
Bi-monthly Caspian Sea Dataset Overview
By Elnur Safarov for CASPISNET
07 April 2023
This is the first bi-monthly update by CASPISNET under its new arrangement with IDD to present an overview of existing data sources and databases to understand Caspian Sea level variability under the ongoing impacts of changing climate.
Addressing Azerbaijan’s Carbon Footprint: A Preliminary Case for a Carbon Tax Policy
By Parvana Babayeva
28 March 2023
One effective policy measure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and encourage the transition to renewable energy sources is to implement a carbon tax. A carbon tax is a fee imposed on the production, distribution, and use of fossil fuels based on the amount of carbon dioxide they emit. The revenue generated from such a tax could be used to fund clean energy projects and support vulnerable communities affected by climate change. However, implementing a carbon tax in Azerbaijan would require careful consideration of the country’s specific context and needs, including the policy imperative to balance economic development and environmental protection.
Sustainable Agriculture from the ‘Efficient Water Use’ Perspective
By Hajar Huseynova
03 March 2023
Agriculture is one of the main contributors to the national economy of Azerbaijan: it accounts for 6 percent of the country’s GDP and employs about 36.5 percent of the country’s economically active population. Azerbaijan thus gives special attention to its agriculture sector to diversify economic activities and also in order to provide higher food security levels.
Reviving the Kura River Basin Harmonizing Azerbaijan’s Water Resources Management with the EU’s Water Framework Directive
By Hajar Huseynova
09 February 2023
This analytic policy brief will examine Azerbaijani and EU relations from the water perspective and explore how the country’s burgeoning partnership with the EU is shaping the issue of water cooperation in the regional context.
Unraveling Azerbaijan’s Water Crisis
By Young ADA Scholars
19 January 2023
This analytic policy paper examines the current state of Azerbaijan’s water-related problems by surveying its fundamental causes, raising awareness about its broad future effects, and outlining potential policy options to mitigate risks and lessen their severity
Challenges and Perspectives for Azerbaijan’s Food Security
By Ahmad Humbatov
12 January 2023
This document summarizes a roundtable discussion with Assistant Representative to Azerbaijan of the Food and Agriculture Organization, Bariz Mehdiyev, which took place on 19 December 2022 at ADA University under the auspices of the Institute for Development and Diplomacy (IDD). The event was hosted by the Head of IDD’s Energy and Sustainable Development Program, Ahmad Humbatov. A list of participants is provided at the end of the document.
Addressing Baku’s Congestion Problem
By Inara Yagubova
25 November 2022
This document summarizes a roundtable discussion that took place on 17 November 2022 at ADA University under the auspices of the Institute for Development and Diplomacy, which was hosted by IDD Director Dr. Fariz Ismailzade. A list of participants is provided at the end of the document.
Assessing the “Great Return to Karabakh”
By Aybaniz Ismayilova
31 October 2022
This IDD analytic policy brief will examine specific points of Azerbaijan’s “Great Return to Karabakh” strategy and its impacts on the Karabakh IDP community as well as how well the strategy of new, modern, and smart urban settlements in the former conflict areas affects the lives of returning IDPs in Karabakh.
Environmental Cooperation Among Caspian Littoral States
By Intigam Mamedov
14 October 2022
This analytical policy brief examines the main ecological problems of the Caspian region, the stages of cooperation between the littoral states in the environmental area, and existing interstate institutional and legal mechanisms. It also explores the geopolitical dimension of environmental issues and provides recommendations on how to increase the efficiency of the Caspian region’s environmental protection policy.
Strengthening Azerbaijan’s Juvenile Justice System
By Ramil Iskandarli
14 July 2022
Overall, Azerbaijan’s legislative framework is compliant with the legal norms and standards provided in relevant international instruments. Nevertheless, the country has still room for the further improvement of its legislation, policies, and practices governing access to justice for children in conflict with the law. This IDD analytical policy brief contains several suggestions that would be useful to adopt as the basis for reform to eliminate inconsistencies and gaps in existing legislation in order to strengthen the rights of children and their access to justice.
Improving Azerbaijan’s Water Management System
By Chingiz Mammadov
17 June 2022
Azerbaijan’s leadership has recognized that the optimization of the country’s water management system is an urgent national interest. Perhaps the most important piece of evidence in this regard is that on 15 April 2020, a special State Commission under the chairmanship of the Deputy Prime Minister was created by presidential decree to deal holistically and systematically with the management of water resources in Azerbaijan.
Bridging the Pedagogical and Employment Gap in Azerbaijan
By IDD and Azerbaijan France Chamber of Commerce
01 June 2022
This policy memo results from a roundtable discussion recently held at ADA University under the auspices of the Institute for Development and Diplomacy and the Education and Human Resources and Labor Regulation Working Committees of the Azerbaijan France Chamber of Commerce. Attendees included more than 50 representatives of leading local and international companies as well as senior management officials from 10 Azerbaijani universities.
How this War in Europe Upsets Global Food Security
By Jahangir E. Arasli
23 May 2022
Drawing on prior Biblical references, the New Testament’s Book of Revelation depicts the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. This later came to be interpreted as a typology of divine eschatological punishment: pestilence, internecine war, famine, and the death of Hell. The four riders were “given power over one quarter of the earth to kill by the sword and hunger and death, and by the wild beasts of the earth,” the text says.
Agriculture, Education, and Sustainable Returns
By Nazrin Baghirova
19 May 2022
The analytic policy brief serves as an introduction to the nexus of policy issues revolving around agriculture and education in furtherance of the national priority to ensure sustainable resettlement in the context of post-liberation Karabakh, which in turn requires the right sort of economic development policies.