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This paper aimed to describe the National Centre for Neurosurgery, the only specialized hospital in the treatment of neurological diseases in Kazakhstan and the leading neurosurgical hospital in Central Asia. Historical data were collected from the archive materials of the National Centre for Neurosurgery. The paper outlines the achievements of the Centre in providing neurosurgical care to the population over the past 15 years, commencing with its establishment in 2008. During this period, there has been a 2.3-fold increase in the number of neurosurgeons at the Centre, accompanied by a significant seven-fold rise in the number of surgeries conducted. Additionally, the Centre has hosted international conferences and educational programs in collaboration with the Asian Congress of Neurological Surgeons and the European Association of Neurosurgical Societies. Throughout the last 15 years, more than 70 treatment techniques were introduced, and subsequent technology transfer initiatives extended these methods to regions within the country. The National Centre for Neurosurgery has achieved remarkable progress in delivering patient-centered neurosurgical care, rehabilitation programs, and innovative treatments, supported by state funding, benefitting patients across Central Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Introduces a typology of higher education institutions (HEIs) created in Central Asia after the Soviet collapse in 1991. • Classifies new HEIs as 'external', 'hybrid', 'bi-national' and 'neo-Soviet' based on structure, founding actors, and funding. • In Kazakhstan, most new HEIs were private. New external norms showed efforts to create a different kind of higher education. • A blend of Soviet and external structures/norms in Kyrgyzstan is partly due to dependence on non-state sources of funding. • In contrast, institutional entrepreneurs in Tajikistan reduced uncertainty by modelling new HEIs on the Soviet-era template. Across the former Soviet space, governments have grappled with fundamental questions around how to build or re-form sovereign nations, how to deal with the legacies of the preceding Soviet era, and how to navigate intense globalization processes that were further stimulated with the collapse of the communist bloc in 1991. Structural reforms have extended to all aspects of society, particularly to social institutions such as higher education that had historically been very closely linked to the state. One response to change has been the massive expansion of higher education systems. The dramatic growth of the ex-Soviet higher education systems and the impact of the path-altering events of 1991 lead to the research questions this paper explores, which are, 1) To what extent did HEIs created between 1991 and 1996 represent a break from the Soviet past? and 2) How do patterns in the emergence of new HEIs compare across the former Soviet space? Using the cases of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, drawing theoretically from sociological institutionalism and methodologically from a comparative case study including in-depth interviews with 36 faculty members, this paper sets out a novel typology of four distinct patterns in the new HEIs that emerged in the first five years following the Soviet breakdown. These are classified as 'external', 'hybrid', 'bi-national' and 'neo-Soviet', each being distinguishable in terms of their organization, founding actors, and funding model. Through this comparative investigation, the paper elaborates on the dynamics of structural reforms in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The assessment of future multiple ecosystem services (ESs) is of great significance to regional development. However, future data simulation and climate change impacts still need further research. This paper constructs an assessment framework for future ESs based on the earth system model, which can comprehensively analyze and trade-off carbon storage (CS), water yield (WY), soil conservation (SC), habitat suitability (HS), potential production of cereals (PPC), potential production of roundwood (PPR), and potential production of livestock (PPL). Furthermore, we carry out a case study in Central Asia. Based on IPSL-CM6A-LR model, we evaluated the levels of multiple ESs and their comprehensive tradeoffs in 2050 under five shared socioeconomic pathways (SSP126, SSP245, SSP370, SSP460, and SSP585). The results show that (1) with the increase in carbon emissions (from SSP126 to SSP585), the terrestrial CS and WY in Central Asia will first increase and then decrease in 2050. Notably, SC and HS experience a significant decline under SSP585 (7.76% and 2.20%, respectively), indicating environmental risks associated with high-emission scenarios. (2) Among the five pathways, the middle path (SSP245) strikes a better balance between development and environment. It demonstrates the highest levels of SC, HS, PPR, and PPL. Additionally, CS and PPC witnessed an increase of more than 4%. (3) SSP370 achieves the highest comprehensive trade-off score (1.087), slightly surpassing that of SSP245 (1.086). It exhibits the highest CS and WY among the five pathways. However, its SC, HS, PPR, and PPL are comparatively lower than those of SSP245, being at the intermediate level. We propose directions for the development of Central Asia: A middle pathway should be taken, as well as necessary climate and sustainable policies should be formulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigated the MP presence and removal in the urban WWTP in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan. MP concentrations in the 100–5000 μm size were analyzed across treatment stages with a modified treatment process scheme, and their removal efficiencies were evaluated. The WWTP effluent displayed a low MP concentration (4.06 ± 3.06 MP/L to 5.44 ± 3.51 MP/L), but considering the daily wastewater discharge (253,900,000 L/day), it can significantly contribute to the MP pollution of aquatic systems. Seasonal variation was observed in the influent, with higher abundance during summer, while no significant trend was observed in the effluent. The WWTP achieved an 88.6–93.0 % removal efficiency, with mechanical treatment and granular filtration being the most effective, followed by biological treatment and UV disinfection. Fragments were the most abundant among the observed shapes (53.9–59.9 %) and black MPs dominated (44.7–67.5 %). Polyethylene (PE) emerged as the most prevalent polymer type among the MPs analyzed (31.6–35.7 %). [Display omitted] • MP abundance, removal, and seasonal variation in an urban Kazakhstan WWTP were investigated. • Seasonally fructuating MP concentrations peaked in summer and were lowest in winter. • The dominant shape, color, and polymer type were fragments, black color, and polyethylene. • The MP removal was 88.6–93.0 %, with granular filtration being the most effective process. • Daily Astana WWTP discharge to aquatic systems was estimated as 52.7 ± 22.6 g/day. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We study the relationship between women's empowerment and adherence to recommended infant and young child feeding practices in Central Asia. • We simultaneously analyze three dimensions of empowerment: attitude toward domestic violence, social independence and decision-making power. • Woman's decision-making power—a measure of her instrumental agency—predicts greater adherence to recommended IYCF practices. • A woman's attitude toward domestic violence and social independence are not consistent predictors of adherence to recommended IYCF practices. • Associations between decision-making power and IYCF practices vary little with child gender, cohabitation with one's mother-in-law, or wealth. This paper examines the relationship between women's empowerment and infant and young child feeding practices in Central Asia using Demographic and Health Survey datasets collected during 1995–2017. We employ a measure of women's empowerment with three dimensions that is available for many recent surveys as well as a measure of decision-making power over use of one's own income present for income-earning mothers in all surveys. We identify a positive association between a woman's decision-making power—a measure of her instrumental agency—and adherence to World Health Organization–recommended feeding practices. We find little significant association between a woman's attitude toward domestic violence, or her degree of social independence, and adherence to recommended feeding practices. Our results further show that the association between women's decision-making power and feeding practices varies little with child gender, whether or not she cohabitates with her mother-in-law, or household wealth. We thus provide evidence from Central Asia that policies and programs intended to empower women can improve child feeding practices, with similar benefits across a variety of household types. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Research integrity is understood in terms of academic and professional integrity. • Honesty, responsibility, and respectfulness are important researcher values. • Limited presence of research ethics committees. • Human participant research ethics is an individual responsibility. Central Asian (CA) countries have been actively developing their research and knowledge production systems. However, inconsistent alignment with international research ethics norms creates challenges for researchers in CA to equally participate in global knowledge production. Based on quantitative survey responses of 296 social science researchers from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan, this paper explores social scientists' understandings of international principles and practices of human participant research ethics. The findings show that CA social science researchers focus on a broad understanding of research integrity, focused on academic and professional integrity. The respondents highlighted the importance of individual researcher values such as honesty, responsibility, and respectfulness. With only 35 % of the respondents reporting the existence of a research ethics committee (REC) at their institutions, most respondents believe that human participant research ethics are an individual rather than an institutional responsibility in Central Asia. This study has implications for developing research and policy in other post-Soviet and emerging research contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]