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Project Amu Darya is an Oxford University Expedition that will travel the length of the Uzbek Amu Darya River to record an oral history of the Aral Sea Crisis. We will then share our research through a film - to be released in 2024.
The Aral Sea Crisis:
In the 1960s, the Aral Sea was the fourth-largest lake in the world. Since then, increasingly widespread Soviet irrigation networks built along the sea’s tributaries – especially the Amu Darya river - have caused the Aral Sea to shrink dramatically. It is now less than 10% of its original size. In 2010, the U.N. Secretary-General described the Aral Sea Crisis as “one of the planet's worst environmental disasters.”
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The project:
Project Amu Darya (2023-2024) will capture and portray the history the Aral Sea Crisis through the lens of the Amu Darya River, and the voices of its people. This summer, we will travel the length of the Uzbek Amu Darya to record oral histories from those who have experienced the river's degradation. With this, we hope to create a film that would show the human story of this environmental change.
The project's goals:
- To create a historical record of the river’s changes.
- To use the film to raise awareness for the Aral Sea Crisis, and to support the people and organisations mitigating its worst effects.
- To build educational partnership links between Oxford University and various Uzbek Universities through collaborating on this project.
- To release the Amu Darya film in 2024, and screen it at a range of venues, including Oxford University, the Uzbek embassy in London, and various film festivals in Uzbekistan and Britain.
Find out more at www.projectamudarya.org
The Team:
The Project Amu Darya team consists of students from the University of Oxford and from various Uzbek universities. We are still in the process of forming the partnerships with the Uzbek-half of the team. We will add them to this page as soon as we can!
Oscar Turner
I'm a second-year historian at St Hugh's College, Oxford. I am also in my third year of Russian language studies. My passion for the Aral Sea Crisis grew out of living in Uzbekistan for two years, where I had the opportunity to work as an editor-in-translation for UNDP programs on environmental awareness - something I still think the Aral Sea Crisis sorely needs. I am excited to engage with Aral Sea conservation work through Project Amu Darya. In doing so, I hope to share a more empathetic story of the Aral Sea Crisis - the story of the people who have personally experienced this environmental change. I also relish the opportunity to develop my film-making whilst tackling a truly important environmental cause.
Annie Liddell
I'm a third-year Human Scientist at St. Hughs College, Oxford, with a long-standing concern for environmentalism and the relationships between humans and nature. My academic focus has centred around biological conservation and anthropology, as I believe that understanding emotional and cultural perceptions of nature and ecological crises is essential in developing effective steps to address them. I'm excited to be a part of Project Amu Darya, working toward an engaging and informative documentary that focuses on the large-scale and everyday responses to the Aral Sea Crisis. By capturing a small part of the complexities of this issue, I hope to contribute to enhancing top-down and bottom-up approaches in addressing the repercussions of the ongoing Aral Sea Crisis.
James Chapman
As a third-year student at St Hugh's College, Oxford, pursuing a degree in Archaeology & Anthropology, I have developed a keen interest in the dynamic interplay between humans and natural resources. In my capacity as the Vice-President of the Oxford Sustainable Business & Entrepreneurship Society (OSBE), I recently had the privilege of hosting a talk by George Monbiot on the alarming effects of agriculture on the environment and the pressing need for sustainable and resilient food production systems. Against this backdrop of agricultural intensification, Project Amu Darya presents a unique opportunity to document the devastating human impact of resource mismanagement and the potential for restoration. Over the years, media coverage of environmental degradation has played a pivotal role in raising public awareness and interest, and I am looking forward to witnessing how Project Amu Darya will further catalyse this discourse in the context of the Aral Sea Crisis.
Vivek Raman
I'm a first year English Language and Literature student at St Hugh’s College, and I am the sponsorship officer for Project Amu Darya. Other than literature, I am interested in sustainable development and sustainable politics. I have two years experience in fundraising and sponsorship, specifically in development in the educational sector. Outside of academics, I'm a keen singer and musician and enjoy playing rugby.
Why Us?
This project is, at heart, an attempt to support those combatting the Aral Sea Crisis. Donating to us would help raise awareness for an environmental crisis that does not receive anywhere near enough attention. Here are a few problems with the current state of the Aral Sea Crisis we hope our project will address:
Lack of media understanding:
Despite being arguably one of the worst manmade environmental disasters in history, global media awareness surrounding the Aral Sea Crisis is extremely limited. We hope our film will engage a wider audience and generate more support in fighting this crisis.
Lack of academic understanding:
Outside of Uzbekistan, well-researched and extensive historiography of the Aral Sea Crisis is still a new field. We hope that our oral history record of the Amu Darya will contribute to this nascent oeuvre.
Constrained geographical focus:
Studies of the crisis have largely focused on the Aral Sea itself, and not on the upstream stories the crisis. As such, studies of the Aral Sea Crisis tend to leave out the personal experiences of the people who have lived through the crisis along the Amu Darya river. To our knowledge, our project will be the first film and the first oral history recorded along the Amu Darya since the fall of the U.S.S.R.
Timing:
Our expedition would come at a critical moment in the memory of the Amu Darya’s people. In as little as a 10 years from now, it will be impossible to record the first-hand memory of the entire Aral Sea Crisis. Today, some local people will remember the Soviet canal expansion of the 1960s all the way through to the environmental reforms under President Mirziyoyev.
Alongside this, by funding us you will help both British and Uzbek young students further their careers in the sustainability and documentary sector.
What We Need
Funding:
We currently estimate that the fieldwork of this project will cost £14,200. Here is a breakdown of these costs:
- Flights: £1500
- Camera Equipment: £3000
- Audio Equipment: £570
- Medical and first aid equipment and training: £830
- Vaccinations: £800
- Insurance: £400
- Stipend for Uzbek student translator: £1000
- Accommodation: £3750
- In-country transport: £500
- Food: £750
- Post-production costs: 1,000
Currently, we have around £9,000 of this funding:
- Oxford University Expeditions Council: £2,000
- Oxford Nizami Gangavi Centre: £1,500
- Royal Geographical Society (with IBG): £3,000
- Gilchrist Educational Trust: £1,000
- Private donations: £1,000
- Oxford JCRs: £500
Therefore, we currently need the remaining £5,200 in order execute this project's fieldwork. We are still finding other avenues for funding outside Indiegogo. So even if we do hit the goal, do not let it dissuade you from donating to this project!
Other Ways You Can Help:
We would love it if you could share our campaign with your family and friends!
If you want to follow us, we are Project Amu Darya on LinkedIn. We are also in the process of making an instagram account, so keep an eye out. Please like and subscribe when it goes live! Any support is more than welcome!
