the western publics are told, the collective west must be brush, i inflict a strategic defeat of the kremlin in the name of democracy. meanwhile mccaffery shame is announced. this year's parliamentary elections and next year's presidential election is suspended so much ukrainian democracy. the, [000:00:00;00]

the this is southern russia and in a relatively small area between the caspian sea and the carcasses mountains, you'll find in extreme a variety of climates and nature. this isn't like visions. i'm showing thomas, and together we're going to discover the magic of rushes republic of august on the way to help us get a basic understanding of what makes down this time. so enticing, we will speak with your e mail. doesn't go to you as

a biologist and the geography person who has dedicated his life to studying the region. very high. thanks for meeting us up here. um. such a beautiful, beautiful environment. that's for sure. i'm just looking right into your written books, your biologist right now, so many tourists are coming to douglas done. what can they find here that they can't find anywhere else? present bill, which one of the other as tourism has to be picking up here over the last 4 or 5 years after republic that gets done so it's not like anywhere else. fiber, it's landscapes inhabitants are unique lakes and waterfalls. i don't want attract tourists and what about? that's why so many people have been coming lately. i don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing, diesel and i don't know what we're going to do the. with more doors, though that means more damage to the environment. is that a concern for the people in here and douglas done and what is being done to protect

this landscape? not business law, certainly tourism, especially the influx we've seen over the last couple of years and it has an impact on the environment. and i have diversity because it's not even here. as you can see, the image ship is more traffic. now these are the people need to be educated and not to live, to get partial properly dispose of trash and not ruined the natural habitats and all that. we need to preserve this beautiful and diverse nature we have and i guess down to the most that we need to build awareness. kind of maybe that's a concern of course, but it's something for the government to decide for us to use because we have the tourism industry, which is directly responsible for i did a level as a researcher and a member of the biggest down division of the russian geographical society that i'm involved to with them and that's we try to contribute to educate people, to reach out to them via a media cement. we try to explain the importance of, of biodiversity service, then what has to be done to protect it though. so what i thought i was not a good idea. there is amazing diversity here. it is just so beautiful. how is all

of this created and why he here? um because yeah, i guess down is unique for the diversity of its landscapes. is this what is if you look at the map of the coal, cuz there's going to the width of the mountain range and i guess down is 200 kilometers. but that's why we have valley is foot hills and in a regions around which a very dry and higher areas in the mountains of the great a cool cause and go to these diverse conditions have certain implications. so going to different plants and animals choose to have attacks where they thrive, where they feel protected, didn't have enough nutrients at them. so when you look at all history, when snowfall in the mountains was heavy yesterday that people slipped to georgia as a bush on no. chechnya, i came into white house to hush winter some issues with golf. it's not like that anymore. if, if the claimant has changed above, there's less snow, obviously the woman is cause that's a little new technology has made funding more efficiently. so people don't have to leave early. we think that they love the mountains of love to climate and clean that so they stay. so some of these factors combined to make all the complex so

unique, to move it apart from that. we are located in the very south of russia and using the southern most the point of the country is near the village of kudos, but when it's done, what it is said by the people here, the dog has done is dangerously beautiful. and that the nature here doesn't forgive mistakes. what do they mean by that? it's true my purse and they just don't want to make things done. dangerous. is that people are unaware of the capricious nature of these mountains. i say, go and visit the got. it can go and for example, is which can be flooded in a matter of minutes when it rains. so i guess it would put people in serious danger . most of the inside those 2 cap on their own state and clips and got off the sinks every multiple times. think of the risk. i believe if you do, it really is that the, i guess done is a great place to visit with people of very hospitable to the local nature is beautiful with many gorgeous lakes and water full. so there is, there's a lot to see that i just done is a piece of heaven here in russia, the sheep there everywhere. in fact, i've heard that there might even be more sheep and august on. then people also

there tells on the road how is this a part of the culture? is it important to the economy? what do she provide for doug as the least? um, what is the word doug is done means land of mountains of so and in such a land, sheep reading is number one for agriculture according to data, or a more than 4600000 sheets and gets done. we have the system where they spend the summers in the alpine meadows and come down to the step for the winter. we use this is made possible again by our unique landscape, the quality of our products as well note and recognize both in russia and abroad. nicely with a major source of revenue for the republicans to move on top of the product of them . so they just don't source that. on the other hand, cheap and other domesticated animals in the mountains is of food for wild animals. this is leslie wills, is a 1000 blankets through the channel around the same time sheets compete with wild animals for past year. so there's

a need to strike the right balance to make sure that both can strive. so feel free to swing wild tours and sheep are essential for all people here. i guess. diversity in geography must mean diversity in biology as well as biologist. can you tell me what sort of animals that we can find here that we can find anywhere else or what makes this place unique? no, and you called us this region is unique being in the very south of russia. it gets really warm. and i said, i felt that right further down south close to the ben, skip. it can get very hot, but that's why we have some of these, these, the didn't live anywhere else in russia right below. they include the live on to find the give such a large and highly venomous snake. is it called some small visits? b c scans, the greek told us he actually does the computer monitor on many bugs. of course, a great variety of them are here, almost like the blue rocks frustrated if people would chat to strike ice the roof as detailed as grubber old in most and many others that you won't find anywhere else in russia as a senior. because there are no other suitable habitats fold them out for the most

fearsome species. but as the cool occasion the leopard at the new cell. unfortunately, poaching still exists. finding the talent to come back to the person, yet the case still has been 11, does survive. ok, so boss is even a program now for releasing leverage into the wild some way here in the quote because it's cost give us as someone who is research and this issue for us. okay, so i can argue that doug is down, still has its own, extend to population out there by way of a small medium but still reproduces itself. so as we're driving through the mountains, something that seems unique to druggist on are these terraces. but they were created thousands of years ago with ancient technology. yet they still stay intact . how are they created in way? probably more that gets down perennial problem after the visit, the mountains off, a little space for agriculture, for planting, bone cooling and running. and so i want to be in court also if that's why people have made those terraces using only manual labor, right? the do they reinforce the slope to prevent erosion due to heavy rain and use them for funding for the school and they put in and you know, some get

a 20 the arrival of new technology and equipment makes funding more efficient to them. and those terraces they neglected so solid base of mine was a monument to terrace farming. so reminder of pasta agricultural brand decision is good for the many studies about this phenomenon that goes away is about some of these. maybe people will use them again some day. who knows somebody about the different as much as they go to. so i know that you've been studying this your entire life, specifically darkest on your biologist. you are, you've written books, as we've mentioned. what makes this place so interesting for you personally? what is it in the soul of douglas done for you? when you find it, you gotta do. i was born here. i grew up here. everything in my life is connected to that gets done. i became passionate about biology and we've been doug as done. he is essentially daily and so unique biological lab. it has high mountains valley's lowland forest stems, deserts the senior,

and the great diversity of landscapes and animals which inhabit them. typically the one of the most fascinating things about traveling through the august time is the ever changing climate. you just don't know what you're going to see around the next mountain or hills. and it's all just so beautiful and interesting to look kenya of the crown jewel of doug . this don healed our who signed off is a geographer and officially one of the best teachers in russia. we asked him to help us on cover some of the secrets of this place filled our thanks for meeting me here. i think we're good. we're the luckiest people to have this view and have this conversation. so you're a teacher, you're a geographer. this is a lot of canyon, lot of people, not our grand canyon, but not too many people know about this place. also the heart of divers dot and they say that this is it. so what makes this place are unique when the employer and one of the most popular and most visited places in douglas does, it's

a shame and rightfully considered to be the symbol of august. i'm a, the suicide canyon or it is unique for many reasons. on the 1st for its size and depths, and it's often compared to the grand canyon at the you. what as and when you measure damped, even though it's important to understand what you take as you'll venge. mom is this . the sewage canyon consists of 3 pods and we've been know number one is the so called the main canyon and the deepest quantity on deal is its depth is about 2000 meters. just at the 11th of this is the deepest point to the sooner. lot canyon because these ranges very high or color both bases from the upper right now. we're standing on a middle platform united. so the canyons relative dance here is about 700 meters. but another thing that makes the suit kind of in unique is its structure that it can select a residue, this or log itself again between sky is a very ancient river, even though. so how did this county in a much of when the river 1st appeared that they weren't any mountains around here?

the area was flat to more than 10000000 years ago, but the since then an active mountain formation is taking place and nobody me on the, as the terrain got hire for the real, a caught a deep pause. it caught the thanks to bottom erosion, z and that's how the canyon was formed over millions of years. and we don't see it . it's my understanding that earthquakes are happening here all the time. so does that mean that this particular canyon is always changing? always growing even getting deeper. it's through to the, at the yes indeed. no, i said, so this area is classified as a high seismic hasn't territory trends. because as most of doug, as the continues, the canyon is still changing and growing as a result of geological processes or change as the by the river, the same time moving, it continues to deep. and it's bad, i mean, so the depth of the canyon is growing. i do is in geology, nothing is static c, like in a photo is see this more like a, video's an ongoing process, mostly staging the changes of microscopic those so we can see them,

the slide with them you're supposed to can your own land slide process is also take that tone right, so this photos and canyons, and there's always the danger of rock formations being unstable, which cause landslide squared. but this is why the canyon goes deep. i'm going to be of the us quakes happen every day here. god says this is a high seismic has a territory, but it just like most of the biggest on google to can you magnitude though is quite low and one yellow to 1.5 points that go with the humans con, feel for it. they used the deal with this. one of the strongest earthquakes ever to happen here was in may 1970 to us. it's results can be seen on one of the bank so that you a k water reservoir. blessed us greg was followed by a major land slide us on social is got a, it seems to me that we have a sort of geological museum here because you can see the layers of the canyon and that goes back, as you said earlier, tens of millions of years. so what kind of secrets can we find? what does this kenyan tell us about the history? there is a lot of trim,

a subordinate canyon. so special and beautiful is the steep slopes up. this way you can trace volcanic ages go to more than uh, since this tower tree used to be at the bottom of the world's ocean for a long time before the mounts informing processes began that we mostly see send as only a gear supplementary wrong. so beloved, no middle of a tens of millions of years and show it while this land was at the bottom of the ocean rocks led of each other to form this sort of tank effects which the bottle speaking of their rage, the top of the as just 5 to 800 meters us in a zoe. look at paleo g near g and i'm motion the quote to repair is missiles always good if we go deep in this vault, we can trace misa. zoe and cretaceous. rule class. it's stunningly beautiful from appear. but you want to go down and take a look from the water side of the

locals, say that you can actually drink this water here. so why is it so clean? why is it so clear? are there any health benefits to this water? and the some, the glass in the secret behind this want to is the fact that there, along the river. so lucky and those that flow into the supply. but as it would select the using economic, there were several hydro electric power plants, the dams slowed down their flow. detroit as they slow the particles in the water central and also the water color becomes bryant to as it gets less monday, nimble. this is how the clarity of water is a cheap, mostly gonna, that came over as of now you just mentioned the hydro electric power stations. this water is actually a mighty mighty force providing power too much of that. just on talk to me a little bit about that and how much power is actually coming from this rest of the so there indeed are you. when you look at the river from the mountains. uh, it looks like a tiny blue ribbon and, and it's hard to believe that it's got huge power generating potential. so if

somebody's true that the silicon is one of the most powerful rivers in the north, the cool chris's motion, particularly in terms of generating energy use. this is why we have a series of how problems on the silica store and the 2 k hydro electric power plant is among the most powerful the, this capacity is 1000 megawatts point 1000000 kilowatts. this seems like a huge potential, which is exactly why we have so many power plants built on it. so this water is a unique color and people render say that water changes color as of the day, moves with decent, this unique clothing and some dealer with uh yours because okay, i already talked a bit about how walter here gets its clear blue color go away i almost took was uh, another find to play here. is it changing that for lighting here? c, as that changes, depending on the depth of the water. so you can see different color effects and dozens of them. it all depends on the weather and the depth of the warranty you are

looking at to go. they see or move. you'll see one color on a bright, sunny day. like now i'm chest and a completely different color at sunset at the so it depends on both the weather and the time of day. so that you are a teacher. in fact, uh you are officially recognized as one of the best teachers in russia. so congratulations on that, but what i'm interested in what you tell your pupils about this area and even about that i just, i'm in general. what is important for them as opposed to by sure, thank you very much. is to that i love my job. it'd be glad i've, i enjoy working with children and this place in particular, this canyon is the best part, the kids say, and i often bring them here. as i believe it's important to give children really experiences when you're teaching things like geography, which to help them see the things you're talking about before the 12th in here, they can see the power generating capacity of the river. there's and the gym, for example. those do, they can also see the wrong layers of different geological periods on the screen. so i make it

a point to show the kids the things that i'm talking about in class. and for you personally. not about sense of what do you like most of what brings you joy about. so the you start, your son is part of my so my identity might be i'm what i like about it is it's diversity on both. someone's have different people with different preferences. so you can find a place where they love those, somebody they can be on the caspian beaches. learning is most somewhat deep in the mountains being within the emotional, anyone can find a correspond for themselves. he asked each other and that's what i love about is incredibly interesting conversation. thanks very much. appreciate the the metal course. another micro climate, a sand dune desert. it certainly looks out of place here. but a content study. cool. a we'll mystery,

surrounded by the mountains of august on the study part, some of the works at the special nature reserve here that about thank you very much for meeting me out here. i'm a bona fide doone goon. so this is a great experience for me. so let's get right into it. i'm sorry, cool. is known as one of the 8th wonders of the world. and so there has to be some legends as to why this place was created or how it was created. can you tell me some of the pillow and welcome to sided equipment, your rights in the old times, people would often come up with some story or legend to explain things. they found hard to understand, like how something to your trained change. so people came up with quite a lot of stories about this place, but so i personally prefer the most romantic one. it's a legend, devout, an unhappy love, which is a man called abraham lincoln. his local village, not far from here with his beautiful daughter body,

asked him the young man wanted to marry her, but she loved. 0 as her father, however, refused lodging proposal and wanted to test his level 1st, he told him to build a sand mountain and so tall that abraham, whose house would be visible from the top beloved. so blot started bringing piles of sand to prove his love for betty and renewals when he finally finished and went to see abraham the subject. he found a very old woman there. it was his lover's body out to a slave to himself and turned into an old man more working. it took him so many years to complete it well, but he, that's the legend. but it tells us that things like this can also happen in lives that are both sad and romantic. and so those are the legends. talk to me about factually. how did this get here? how was it created? scientists believe that the study come itself was formed on ancient marine terraces as we, we've got surfaces covered with sam will date the sands were carried here from the foremost ranges of the caucus. this mountain he was able to collapse with thousands of years ago. that's the scientific explanation is up,

so we know how it was created. how old is this place? i know it's num dunham, scientific research indicates that the current a only and land forms we observed a deck of 5000 years. no of the sand itself is about 100000 years old or color start this year. it is considered one of the highest and tallest standalone dunes in the world. is that true? and can you give me an idea of the size and scope of this too much? but they to place a relative height of sadie, come from the base to the top is a 150 meters. if the height above sea level is 244 to 246 meters according to data from the darkest eyes, nature reserve so full, but in terms of the area and there's 3 kilometers wide and 4 kilometers long. but that's the measurements of study come now that the total area of the sand massive is get the sorry, come, parkins is $576.00 hectares of ideas, which is part of the diag a stand nature reserve and which is

a protected area. and i feel the strong winds here and sand moves with the wins. does this do change over time? and if so, how? and also it's kind of a miracle to me that it stays in one place and talk to me a little bit about that. somebody me on the present day started come shaped by winds, blowing continuously along the caucasus mountains. whatever the southwest when brings from the northwest, wind carries away because there was a sort of struggle between the 2. alternately produces the sand. richardson tips. perhaps this is the secret behind the sided, calm, doing a constantly blowing wednesday, shipping the landscape and will lose the sand. one wind springs with it for the another carries a way of being here. you feel that it is its own climate really like a desert. the temperatures understand can get up to 60 degrees a celsius. why is it that this place has its very own microclimate decision of the course? and we have a micro climate here is because they are in the mountains on one side in steps on the other forming a distinct and micro climate on the can you,

the temperature of the sam reaches 30 degrees centigrade is fairly, as mid springs. so it can exceed 60 degrees centigrade in the hottest summer months . we've had reports of sam temperatures rising to 80 degrees centigrade events. and that's the climate. and we have here with the work here with if this is a real desert climate, does that mean that there are snakes and scorpions and maybe scary animals that need to be worried about? so this teaching port, uh indeed the plant life of that nature reserve and study comes in doing is very diverse and red and she's not. with wildlife includes many species of scorpions and novel campbell spiders or various calibrated stakes as well. for example, the blush steak and the trans caucasians, wrapped snake side. there's a great diversity of snake species, which always sits the only nature reserve in russia, where a relatively small area is inhabited by $21.00 reptile and amphibian species. i'm using the mediterranean tortoises among them a very rare animal. would it be in order to preserve this diversity in the natural

environment of study chrome and at the same time to let visitors enjoy the beauty of this place. we are creating echo trails here of the will. you've probably seen this broad one way paved and expanded the middle mesh sort of demetrius mounted on the pile foundations. in fact, all the constructions in the nature reserve are built on piles as there are no permanent structures. i think unless you step down from the trail and test your lock and you won't encounter any dangerous creatures either with foot from the walkway, you can safely watch lizards of various colors. on the dune top, there's a remarkable code headed organ last single. it's a very interesting and beautiful lizard. the symbol of the study can reserve courtesy you can enjoy all this safely from the trail without risking your health or damaging the natural environment of this place is shared with lenny trellis not only appeared all the knowing. know in the past couple years, tourism has increased significantly that has its pluses and it has its minuses. are you concerned about protecting this natural wonder and the ecology of this place? and if so,

what's being done to protect the controls over i already mentioned were trying to minimize damage to the nature reserve by making trails and walking routes for visitors in order to avoid having people roaming, sorry, come wherever they likely go. with walking off the official routes is not allowed to send that simply to protest to wild life as a whole. and then the number of visitors has significantly grown double compared to 2019 that year we had 10. well, almost 11000 visitors know in 2018 we had 25000 visitors. and last year we had 220000 tours here. well, that's a large number for us. it's a unique habitat and we're doing our best to preserve it for future generations that about thank you very much for an interesting conversation and even more for sharing this beautiful place with us, the having meticulously made our way through the many personalities so that make up the natural wonders that is done to stock. it is impossible not to reflect on our

experience with anything but fall and a wonderment. and perhaps a hint of display. the mountains, the rivers, the ever changing climate, the flat lands and desert sand dunes, the people we met along the way all of this is don gustavo and i count myself to be incredibly lucky to shared with you. so where should we go next to the, the, the watching vision. why is that? why you, unless i give but plenty of the store and this, this, she said, and i showed on the phone, i'm not going to stay less. so can i scan when i am at

your desktop session? that's just showing me your just is when you mine is going you said almost the set up on me and the, the in 1884. the german empire began its colonial invasion. internet may be from the very start, burling encourage the white calling is to settle in south west africa and take away the best land from the local drive. the germans were actively draining natural resources and using the local population as a cheap labor source. this was causing major protest and led to

a rebuild your in 1904, they hear arrow, and nama drives rebuild against the german colonial rule. kaiser wilhelm the 2nd was fully determined in order to suppress the rebellion with the utmost severity against the inhabitants of nam may be germany through its 15000 well equipped army . all around the country concentration camps were built in humane medical experiments over citizens were conducted within the period of 4 years. the germans gild up to 60000 people, among which there were 80 percent of the here railroad tried and 50 percent of the number dr. the events in south west africa are called the 1st genocide of the 20th century and not without re these are compared to the holocaust just do decades later after the massacre in them. maybe a scalars are solved unit food on the same brown colonial uniform which puts the

world into the chasm of the 2nd world war. the oh, what else seemed wrong? just don't you have to shape out the application and engagement because the trails when so many find themselves will support, we choose to look so common ground, the acceptance. and i'm here to plan with you whatever you do, you do not watch my new show seriously. why watch something that's so different whitelisted opinions that he won't get anywhere else. welcome to please or do you have the state department, the c, i a weapons, bankers, multi 1000000000 dollar corporations. choose your facts for you. go ahead,

change and whatever you do. don't want myself to stay main street because i'm probably going to make you uncomfortable. my show is called stretching time. but again, you probably don't wanna watch it because it might just change the wayne state. the only city is, is we are selves have serious doubts about the common sense of many western leaders . they have admitted that it is they who are fighting against us, not ukraine. process of the so great i've outside of the west and leave those who are losing for failed rebellion and live involved in a group of expose their own fights against most good. so i have the