Aim. Study of northern Eurasia landscapes with cryogenic relief in order to obtain information about the Quaternary history and climate dynamics in the Pleistocene-Holocene.

Methodology. The study is based on the analysis of landscapes with cryogenic relief in three regions of northern Eurasia in their sublongitudinal sequence – in the Russia European territory north (ETR), in the Western Siberia north and in the Eastern Siberia north. Based on a large amount of factual material, the author’s own and from the literature, a large genetic diversity of such landscapes and their spatial patterns are revealed. Comparison of these patterns with modern climatic zonation, features of the rocks thermal state and with the regional geomorphological structure made it possible to establish in which eras this or that cryogenic relief type was formed, and what natural  conditions and climate corresponded to their development.

Results. It has been established that most of the landscapes with cryogenic relief were formed in the Holocene, and in their distribution correspond to modern climatic zonality. Among them there are types that were formed on pre-Holocene surfaces, but in their distribution and stages of development they are subject to modern zonality. A number of modern cryogenic relief types in their distribution do not correspond to modern zonality and the modern rocks thermal state. They were formed on ancient surfaces in the Middle Pleistocene, and reflect the climate of ancient cold eras, which were characterized by climatic hyperzonation. The good preservation of these forms indicates the absence of glacial covers in the region in the Pleistocene. The location of cryogenic relief forms in the geological section indicates the existence of a marine basin in the Northern Eurasia western sector (ETR and Western Siberia) during most of the Pleistocene, and in the eastern sector (Eastern Siberia) – a similar continental regime throughout the Pleistocene and Holocene. The predominance of polygonal relief in all eras indicates the absence of glaciation in the region in the Pleistocene.

Research implications. The proposed research is relevant because the Quaternary period paleo-geography has been the subject of ongoing debate for decades. Landscapes with cryogenic relief, which formed along with the emergence of the permafrost zone for 2,5 million years, changed during this time and maintained continuity in their development, contain information about the natural processes in the Pleistocene-Holocene, their evolution and climate dynamics. Therefore, identifying the genetic and spatial patterns of such landscapes can be used in paleogeographic reconstructions and be an additional argument in a geological dispute.

Aim. To study geographical differences and assess trends in the vegetation period of downy birch and silver birch within their range across the natural zones of Russia (forest-tundra, taiga, mixed and broad-leaved forests, monsoon mixed forests, forest-steppe, and steppe).

Methodology. Calculations and assessments were conducted for the average long-term dates of leaf unfolding (greening) and complete leaf color change (full yellowing) of birch trees (Betula pubescens, Betula pendula Roth.) at 290 observation points during the period from 1948 to 2016, and for leaf lifespan from 1964 to 1995. Data was collected through classical phenological field observations using the primary method of recording dates of seasonal events within specified territories. Observational data were sourced from programs of the Ural Society of Natural Science Enthusiasts, the Phenological Commission of the All-Union Geographical Society, the Russian Geographical Society, and Russia’s network of protected areas. The study utilized phenological data from protected areas such as Voronezh, Central Forest, Zhiguli, Volga-Kama, Denezhkin Kamen, Basegi, Pechoro-Ilych, Vishera, Bashkir, Visim, Ilmen, South Ural, Shulgan-Tash, Shaitan-Tau, Orenburg (Burtinsky and Aytuarsky sectors), Malaya Sosva, Olekminsky, Kedrovaya Pad, Altai, Barguzinsky, Zeisky, and Sikhote-Alinsky nature reserves, as documented in the Phenological Sections of Nature Chronicles of these reserves.

Statistical analysis included the calculation of average long-term event dates (X avg.), variance (σ²), standard deviation (error) of the mean (σ), and extreme event registration dates. The speed of seasonal event progression was calculated in kilometers traveled per day. For interpolation and visualization of spatial phenological processes, the cross-platform Geographic Information System (GIS) QGIS Desktop version 3.14.16 was used.

Results. The timing and speed of birch greening and yellowing, the latitudinal phenological gradient, birch leaf lifespan, and their trends were calculated, mapped, and analyzed. During the period from 1948 to 2016, the speed of the greening wave across the European part of Russia ranged from 30 to 56 km/day, while in the Asian part, including the Far East, it ranged from 30 to 57 km/day. The speed of the yellowing wave for the same time frame was 43–60 km/day in the European part and 56–230 km/day in the Asian part. The Birch leaf lifespan ranged from 170 days in the steppe zone to 100 days at the northern range boundary. The propagation of greening and yellowing waves from 1948 to 2016 spanned 63 and 42 days across European Russia and 53 and 21 days in the Asian part, respectively. The progression of these waves is influenced by regional climate characteristics and major mountain ranges.

Research implications. The study of spatial-temporal features of vegetation in indicator species enhances our understanding of biota development patterns and their responses to climate change. The findings can be used for developing forest management strategies, planning forestry activities, and monitoring forest conditions. The study of spatial-temporal features of vegetation in indicator species enhances our understanding of biota development patterns and their responses to climate change. The findings can be used for developing forest management strategies, planning forestry activities, and monitoring forest conditions.

Aim. The aim of this work is to determine the ecological and geochemical characteristics of the reference meadow-chernozem soils of Crimea for environmental monitoring.

Methodology. The soil profiles were laid on weakly transformed areas, on floodplains and above-floodplain terraces of rivers in typical conditions of formation of meadow-chernozem soils. A field description of soil sections was completed, and samples were taken from each soil horizon. The key geochemical methods for studying soil samples are IR spectroscopy and X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. Statistical processing of the obtained results and calculation of geochemical indicators (concentration coefficient, total soil pollution coefficient) were performed using the software packages Statistica, Origin, Excel.

Results. The morphogenetic features of the soils of the meadow-chernozem series of the foothills of Crimea have been determined, including formation under conditions of increased moisture, high humus content, effervescence throughout the profile from HCl, and gleization of the lower horizons. The chemical composition of the examined soil sections is dominated by Ca, Fe and Si, which is due to the natural processes of their formation – the properties of carbonate and quartz-containing rocks, the mobility of iron in periodically waterlogged reducing conditions. The calculated concentration coefficients reflect the tendency for the dispersion of the analyzed chemical elements (Na, Mg, Al, Si, P, S, K, Ca, Ti, Mn, Ni, Fe, Zn, Rb, Sr, Zr) and the accumulation of such elements as As (Kk 5-26), Br (Kk 25-33), Cu (Kk 1-2), Co (Kk 1-2) in the upper soil horizons, which may be associated with the indirect influence of agriculture. The total pollution coefficient of the studied soils is within acceptable limits (the highest values for the section R1=9.0 and R3=11.3), which is characterized by a satisfactory ecological and geochemical state of the soils.

Research implications. The theoretical and/or practical significance lies in the possibility of using the obtained results for monitoring the state of the environment and modeling the behavior of individual elements in the nearby agroecosystem.

Aim: Development of proposals for improving scientific and methodological approaches and mechanisms of prospective tourism and recreational areas spatial planning management.

Methodology. The study is based on the postulate that strategic planning and territorial planning in Russia are two different types of planning. The strategic master planning, which became to be popular in recent years, is a mechanism that allows combining these two types of planning for territories, the economic development of which is included in the primary plans of state authorities. In this regard, our study is based, firstly, on the analysis of the legal framework that determines the development of promising tourist territories, namely: the Federal Law "On Strategic Planning in the Russian Federation", which establishes the legal basis for strategic planning in the Russian Federation and determines the documents of strategic planning at the federal level; the Strategy for Socioeconomic Development of the Russian Federation, its initiatives and activities aimed at implementing long-term objectives; the Strategy for Scientific and Technological Development of the Russian Federation; the Strategy for Spatial Development of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2030; industry documents of strategic planning of the Russian Federation. Secondly, the authors relied on existing approaches to strategic master planning in general, as well as on the author's application of this tool to more than 150 tourism and recreation clusters, for example, the tourism and recreation complex of the Ramensky municipal district; during the examination of research and development work on the development of the Strategy for the Development of Tourism in the city of Moscow, the development of proposals for the diversification of economic activity of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation with the aim of effectively using the tourism and recreation potential of the regions based on the application of the mechanism of cross-border cooperation, using the example of the Kaliningrad region, and a number of others.

Results. It was revealed that the main problem of master planning is the weak application of an interdisciplinary approach and a conceptual vision of strategic sustainable development of the territory. It has been established that scientific research methods should be based on a systems approach that allows combining two key approaches to master planning: recreational-geographical (based on the theoretical principles of recreational geography, which is based on the concept of tourist-recreational systems) and strategic management of territorial objects (based on socio-economic priorities and the implementation principles of long-term sustainable development of the territory).

Research implications. The systematization of knowledge in the field of strategic master planning, carried out in this work, will reduce the risks of administrative errors in the planning of territories of priority tourism development (e.i. overtourism or, conversely, lack of demand for constructed objects; potential environmental conflicts or conflicts of nature management, etc.). The competent application of the theory of tourism and recreational systems, principles of formation of a tourist and recreational framework of the territory for subsequent functional zoning in combination with regulatory and management approaches can increase the efficiency of using budgetary funds for the development of tourism and recreational potential, the formation of a comfortable environment for guests of the territory and local residents in order to optimize the volume, structure and geography of tourist flows. The practical significance of the study lies in the developed recommendations for master planning of the tourist macroterritory "Russian Baltic", represented by single subject of the Russian Federation – the Kaliningrad Region. The authors recommend taking into account the risks of tourist and recreational development of the territory with the allocation of zones of existing and potential conflicts.

Aim. To analyze the main indicators of tourist activity in the regions of the Russian-Belarusian border area and develop basic recommendations for the development of tourist and recreational activities in the studied region.

Methodology. The following methods were used to conduct the study: analysis of statistical and analytical information; content analysis of national strategic documents for the development of tourism and programs for the socio-economic development of regions belonging to the Russian-Belarusian border area (three regions from the Russian Federation: Pskov, Smolensk, Bryansk regions and three regions from the Republic of Belarus: Vitebsk, Mogilev, Gomel regions); methods of statistical analysis (correlation method, building dynamic series).

Results. A statistical analysis of tourist activity in the Russian-Belarusian border area for 2019–2023 is presented. The results of the study made it possible to assess the current state of development of the tourism and hospitality industry in the regions of the Russian-Belarusian border region by key indicators: the volume of tourist flow; the number of collective accommodation facilities and the number of persons accommodated in them; the volume of paid services in the tourism sector. The dynamics of inbound, outbound and domestic tourism in the studied region is also analyzed. It is suggested that in modern economic and geopolitical realities, the territory of the Russian-Belarusian border area, having a unique geographical location (transit, periphery and interstality), significant tourist and recreational potential and active development of the tourism sector with the leading role of the Pskov and Vitebsk regions, can become a new destination in the international and national tourist markets.

Research implications. The results of the work and the proposed specific actions for the development of tourism in the Russian-Belarusian border area can be used in the formation of programs for the development of the tourism and hospitality industry in the border areas of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus in the context of international cooperation.

Abstract

Aim. To analyse the level of population health on the basis of the public health index, to compare indicators on a multi-scale level using publicly available demographic indicators.

Methodology. As part of the study, a statistical database of demographic indicators was collected, which includes data on infant mortality and life expectancy in the regions of the Eurasian countries. Three main periods of statistical accounting have been selected ‒ 2010, 2015, 2019, all statistical data have been unified and brought into line with the territory and time period.

All indicators at the regional level of countries were analyzed, compared and evaluated. The result was a database of demographic data for each region from 96 countries of Eurasia (1264 territorial units), adapted for working in GIS.

At the next stage, data selection was performed and based on the selected set of indicators, by means of mathematical and cartographic modeling, the index values are calculated

Results. Based on demographic indicators we calculated the integral indicator – The index of public health of the population (PHI) and we analyzed the quality of public health of the countries and regions of Eurasia. This work has a detailed analysis of the situation of public health of the population in all countries of Eurasia. The results of the study suggest that the growth of the public health index of the population is a global trend. Taking into account the dynamics over the past 10 years, the highest level of health belonged to the regions of European countries and some Asian countries. The number of regions with a low level of health (PHI below 0.55) has decreased over time. In 2010, poor public health was registered in the regions of seven countries, mainly in Asia. In 2015 and 2019, the same level of health was maintained only in the regions of 2 countries. The situation in Russia had some peculiarities of its own; the events of the 90s affected the level of public health and the steady growth that began only since 2001. The paper also analyzed in detail the assessment of the quality of public health in Russia, Mongolia and China, as a result of which the gap between the Chinese and Russian, Chinese and Mongolian regions became even more noticeable

Research implications. The assessment of population health on the basis of the public health index allows to conduct comparative studies at the multiscale level using publicly available demographic indicators.

The conducted research has shown that the simplified algorithm for calculating the public health index gives results that are comparable to the full-scale algorithm, which means that the assessment procedure is accelerated and the speed of management decisions aimed at maintaining public health increases