About the action of Sheki Regional Scientific Center

                                 Yusif Shukurlu PhD on physics-mathematics

           With the decision of Azerbaijan SSR Academy of Sciences Presidium dated April 14, 1972 Sheki Zone Scientific Base (SZSB) was established within Institute of Physics of the academy. The purposes in founding this institution are to develop industry and agriculture of Sheki-Zagatala economical region, to increase efficiency applying advanced achievements of science to production.

            Later, “Geology”, “Genefund”, “Biochemistry”, and “Biophysics” groups were established in Scientific Base.

            According to the decision of the Academy Presidium number 131 dated April 6, 1995 Sheki Zone Scientific Base was called Sheki Regional Scientific Center. With the same decision five research groups in Scientific Center were transformed to laboratory and in addition two new laboratories – Learning floods and Folklore and crafts were created and became 7.

            In 2014, in Sheki Regional Scientific Center structural changes were realized according to the new charter of ANAS. Considering our work condition, laboratories have been called as a department.

           According to the action directions of the department new names were Landscape, Ecological geography, Biochemistry of plants, Molecular biophysics, Selection of mulberry silkworm, Genefund of plants and biodiversity, Folklore and crafts, Historical heritage and ethnography.

The main action directions of SRSC are the followings:

1. Learning local herbs and flora with the Institute of Genetic Resources of ANAS (IGR), Institute of Zoology, Institute of Soil Science and Agrochemistry (ISSA) and Institute of Dendrology (ID), Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnologies (IMBB): saving and restoring natural monuments including the biocenosis of Bash Shabalid; doing researches with the exploration of long-term methods in the direction of increasing soil productivity and protecting them from erosion; development of mulberry planting and forest plants; doing research works on cultivated and long-term plants, including the amarant plant;

2. Continuation of biogeochemical research works connected with the exploration of underground resources of the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus together with the Institute of Geology and Geophysics and Institute of Geography named Hasan Aliyev, and learning local raw materials for industrial use; doing research works in the direction of finding struggle ways with flood for north-west region.

3. Selection of new breeds and hybrids and protection of existing silkworm breeds and hybrids together with the Institute of Genetic Resources of ANAS (IGR) and Institute of Ganja Cattle-breeding of the Ministry of Agriculture; selection of silkworm breeds and hybrids fed with artificial feed and learning economic perspectives in this direction.

4. Searching the types of wild silkworm species - oak silkworm and Saturnia pyri (pavlizlose, Saturnia pyri), which is supposed to live in the forests and gardens of the region together with the Institute of Zoology (IZ) of ANAS

5. Exploring research results of complex biological, physical and chemical methods (including UV and gamma-irradiation) with the purpose of increasing productivity and working condition in sericulture, cattle-breeding, poultry and plant-growing together with the Institutes of Biophysics and Radiation Research of ANAS

6. Realizing scientific-research activities aimed at gaining new knowledge in the direction of Philology, with learning folklore and craft of the region together with ANAS Institute of Folklore

7. Learning the chemical and biochemical properties of vegetative organs of fruit and berry plants spread in mountainous and foothill areas of the region together with the Institute of Genetic Resources of the ANAS and the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnologies

8. Learning ecocographic problems and economic development of North-West region together with the Institute of Geography named Hasan Aliyev, finding remove ways of them, exploration on local and regional tourism ecotourism, rural tourism, agrarian tourism, therapeutic tourism and so on.

9. Learning change characteristics taken place in landscape dynamics of Region area together with the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of ANAS and Institute of Geography

10. Exploring the epitaphs in the historical and architectural monuments located on the North-West region, together with the Institute of History named Abbasgulu Bakikhanov and the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography (ANAS), restoration of the patterns, symbols, ornamentations of in these monuments, finding out the historical figures, ancient Azerbaijan Albania, medieval, new era temples, defense buildings and other architectural monuments, northwestern sanctuaries, various religious objects and religious rituals in the north-western region, learning history and ethnography of minority nations living in the region

11. Learning North-West Azerbaijan history on the basis of archive materials of Azerbaijan National Archives Department, State History Archive, Archive of Political Documents near the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Sheki Branch of Azerbaijan National Archives Department, archive materials of the Institute of Manuscripts named after M.Fuzuli, Georgia, Turkey and Russia.

12. Doing scientific researches with the purpose of defining geodynamical condition of the Great Caucasus from 1998 together with ANAS Institute of Geology and Geophysics and Sheki Regional Scientific Center of ANAS (SRSC), and learning geological and seismic dangers.

13. International cooperation:

1. Agrarian University of Plovdiv, Bulgaria
2. Experiment Station on Vratsa Sericulture and Farming, Bulgaria
3. Tajik Academy of Agricultural Sciences Khujand sericulture practice station
4. Scientific-research Sericulture Institute of Tashkent, Uzbekistan
5. Georgian Academy of Agricultural Sciences
6. Maysori Training and Education Center on Sericulture, India

14. Domestic corporation:
15. ANAS, Institute of Genetic Resources
16. ANAS, Institute of Geography
17. ANAS, Institute of Dendrology
18. ANAS, Institute of Zoology
19. ANAS, Institute of Archeology and Ethnography
20. AR Institute of Ganja Cattle-breeding of the Ministry of Agriculture

ACHIEVEMENTS

• In 2018, employees of ANAS SRSC participated in 16 conferences, including 5 in Turkey and 1 in Ukraine. In these conferences 23 theses and conference materials have been published.
• In accordance with the state program on the development of silkworming in the Republic of Azerbaijan (2018-2025), one employee of the SRI of ANAS, the Leading Enterprise of this Program, from 02.12.2018 to 31.12.2018 - for one month at the Central Research and Training Institute for Silk Therapy in the city of Maysori, India.
• On March, 2019 an initial agreement about signing the cooperation protocol between the same Institute and SRSC, ANAS was reached.
• From 2017, employees of Sheki Regional Scientific Center, together with the Institute of Genetic Resources of ANAS, the Institute of Management Systems, the Institute of Soil Science and Agrochemistry, Scientific Research the Institute of Farming, Bulgaria Plovdiv Agrarian University, Experiment Station on Vratsa Sericulture and Farming were going on the work of International Grant Project of Science Fund (EIF KETPL 2 2015 1 (25) -56 / 44/3-M-33)) about the theme “Making agroecological development model and innovative measures packet on the development of agrarian field on North-West region of Azerbaijan.
• On April 2-7, 2017, with the organization of ANAS, BACSA and Sheki Regional Scientific Center, the 8^th International conference that participated scholars and specialists from 10 countries – Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, China, Thailand, Cuba, Turkey, Russia, Tajikistan, Romania, Georgia about “Climate Change and Chemicals - New Problems of Silk” - “CLISERI” 2017 of BACSA was held for the first time in Sheki. In SRSC, materials of the conference were prepared for publication and printed. This year, on April 8-12, we took part in the 9th conference of BACSA in Batumi, Georgia.
• In the years of 2015-2018, 200 scientific articles and theses of the employees of the center were published in various scientific journals, which 32 of them were published abroad.
• In the years of 2015-2018, 1 Ph.D and 25 doctors of philosophy dissertations were attached to corresponding institutes of ANAS.