Shokan Ualikhanov (Shoqan Walikhanov) school is the newest and most trendy addition to a set of the private schools in Almata. Being the newest one, this brainchild of Aselle Tasmagambetova and Kenes Rakishev, it is intended to fit into the strictest standards. It includes environmental standards too. Shoqan Walikhanov school has been certified according to the strictest norms of LEED standard, getting a LEEDv4 rating for being safe, organic and energy efficient. Thanks to activists and charities Kazakhstan, which relies heavily on fossil fuels, starts to shift to environmentally friendly policies. And what could be better than to raise children in a proper environment!

The Shoqan Walikhanov School has become the first and only educational facility in the CIS that has received a LEED certificate, indicating that the school is built according to all international environmental standards.

LEED (The Leadership in Energy&Environmental Design) is a rating certification system for so-called Green buildings – construction projects whose impact on the environment is minimal. LEED certification was developed in 1993 by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) as a construction standard for measuring energy efficiency and environmental friendliness of projects and buildings.

In order to obtain a LEED certificate, a building must be evaluated for compliance with a number of international environmental requirements. In particular, the construction object should be equipped with systems for efficient use of energy, water, have technologies for reducing waste, emissions and other environmental impacts, and environmentally friendly building materials should be used during construction. A separate point of compliance of the building with the LEED requirements is the fulfillment of the requirements for maintaining the health of the people who are in it.

The Shoqan Walikhanov school building, after an expert assessment of new construction and major repairs, received 49 points with a passing level of 26 points. After passing the examination, the building was assigned the LEED v4 environmental safety category, which indicates the high standards and quality of the materials used during construction.

An example of a systematic approach in the implementation of environmental protection

The private school named after Shoqan Walikhanov was opened in 2020 in Almaty, designed for 800 students from grades 1 to 11. Training is conducted in Kazakh and Russian. It rapidly grew in popularity.

Its founders are a married couple – businessman Kenes Rakishev and philanthropist, environmentalist Aselle Tasmagambetova.

The receipt of the LEED certificate by the Shoqan Walikhanov School is one of the stages of a major environmental project that Kenes Rakishev and Aselle Tasmagambetova have been actively implementing for many years.