We invite you to participate in an interdisciplinary symposium dedicated to the pressing issue of zoning the Himalayas and the Himalayan region. This event will be held in person and remotely on Thursday and Friday, November 19–20, 2026, in the heart of St. Petersburg, at the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (1 Universitetskaya Embankment, St. Petersburg).
The symposium is organized by the Russian Association of Himalayan and Tibetan Researchers (RAHT) with the participation of the Center for Himalayan Scientific Research of the St. Petersburg Union of Scientists, the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the Interdepartmental Center for Himalayan Research of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Main objectives:
a) discuss approaches to defining regional boundaries, the understanding of which may vary depending on the field of knowledge; this may lead to differences between the Himalayas proper and the Himalayan region;
b) discuss geographic (spatial) heterogeneity in the distribution of both natural features (landscapes, vegetation, wildlife) and populations (ethnic groups, languages, religions, art, etc.), including taking into account differences in altitude.
Understanding this heterogeneity leads to the identification of regions within the Himalayas, i.e., their zoning.
To participate in the symposium, please complete the registration form, indicating the title of your paper, and send it to the symposium coordinator, Sergey Yuryevich Zolkin, by March 1, 2026, at rayhimsymp@mail.ru.
Please also note that the symposium is biogeographical in nature for botanists and zoologists. Plant and animal taxonomy are not included in the symposium's scope.
Information Letter No. 2 will be sent only to those who submit a registration form.
Detailed information and the registration form are available in Information Letter No. 1. The text is also available on the association's website.