Program on Central Asia

Scholar-Entrepreneur Initiative

The Program on Central Asia promotes research and teaching at Harvard on the history and current affairs of five Central Asian countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

Yurt with cows grazing in the background

Song-Kol Lake, Kyrgyzstan

Isabelle DeSisto A.B./A.M. '20

We support the study of the Central Asian region using tools and insights from various fields of social sciences and humanities. Our activities include research projects, seminar series, curriculum development and course offerings, creation of digital resources for the study of the region, facilitation of research by students and visiting scholars, and cultural events. 

While the program aims at generating and disseminating knowledge and resources on Central Asia spanning different periods of its history, our main focus is on the independence period and current developments. We approach Central Asia as a region that opened up as a result of the dissolution of the USSR. The states, economies, and people of Central Asia are now an integral part of the globalized world, and developments in the region cannot be properly understood without tracing and analyzing different forms of connectivity, influence, and interdependence.

Our Projects

Wind turbins in Kazakhstan prairie

Renewable Energy Transition in Central Asia

RETCA addresses energy security challenges and environmental problems in Central Asia by studying the governance and politics of the region’s green energy transition. 

Caspiana Logo

Caspiana

Caspiana: A Digital Toolbox for Students and Scholars of Central Asia and the South Caucasus is a resource to facilitate research on the regions east and west of the Caspian Sea. 

Apartments with satellite dishes atop and mountains in the background

Regions and China's Belt and Road Initiative

This seminar seeks to foster vibrant, comprehensive, and fruitful discussion on the ongoing transformations in geopolitics and governance triggered by the BRI. 

grassy plains and mountains

Central Asia and Caucasus Seminar

A series of public seminars on topics in the history, culture, and politics of the Central Asia region.

Sign in Uzbekistan that says, “Welcome, American friends!”

American Diplomats in Central Asia

The accounts of American diplomats who worked in the 1990s and first decade of 2000s shed light on this dramatic period of global history and reveal behind-the-scenes workings of international politics.

Related Insights

Central Asian foreign ministers gather in China in May 2021

How China’s Foreign Aid Fosters Social Bonds With Central Asian Ruling Elites

A mix of gifts and interpersonal elite ties marks China’s approach to Central Asia, contrasting starkly with a Western approach focused on political norms and principles, writes Nargis Kassenova.

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Nurek Reservoir, Tajikistan

Strategic Autonomy for Central Asia: Drawing Inspiration and Support From the European Union

In a new policy memo, Davis Center senior fellow Nargis Kassenova argues that Central Asia should follow the EU’s example in fostering regional cooperation and integration, particularly around the water-energy-climate change nexus.

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Conference participants and organizers

Graduate Student Conference on Central Asia: A Summary

At the Davis Center’s inaugural Graduate Student Conference on Central Asia, emerging scholars shared their research about the region’s history, culture, and socio-political transformations.

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Related Events

Aerial view of container cargo ship in sea
Upcoming Event

Trade and Transport Along the Middle Corridor: World Bank Assessment and Recommendations

The new World Bank report "Middle Trade and Transport Corridor – Policies and Investments to Triple Freight Volumes and Halve Travel Time by 2030" argues that with the right policies the Middle Corridor can boost regional trade, provide resilience and route diversification for the China-Europe container trade, and shield countries and supply chains from geopolitical shocks.

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Map of Central Asia
Upcoming Event

In and Out: Central Asia as a Center of New Mobilities After the Outbreak of War in Ukraine

This panel will discuss the context and reasons for new migration trends in the post-Soviet space, focusing on Central Asia as an important migrant-receiving and migrant-sending region.

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Picture of Astana Steppe
Past Event

Becoming a Kazakh in Tsarist Central Asia: Khojas, Tatars, and Chala-Qazaqs of the Kazakh Steppe

The presentation will delve into the factors contributing to the expansion of the Chala-Qazaq population in late imperial Russia and the tsarist regime's efforts to regulate and confine this elusive ethnic category.

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