GREAT STEPPES

Antelope have made a dramatic return to their historic grassland

The Golden Steppe of Kazakhstan is a vast area of grassland – 75 million hectares. It's one of the world's least protected natural ecosystems, but also the site of one of the most extraordinary conservation efforts of recent years. The Altyn Dala Conservation Initiative has been working to restore the native saiga antelope population. In 2003, there were 20,000 antelope living on the Steppe. However, in 2015, a virus wiped out 60% of the population. Yet, thanks to the Altyn Dala, the Golden Steppe is now home to 2.86 million saiga. The initiative was awarded an Earthshot Prize in recognition of the collaborative effort between rangers, specialists, researchers and communities to bring about such dramatic transformation. The return of the saiga antelope is an important step towards restoring the Steppe…

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The Simple Things (Digital) - 1 Issue, February 2025

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