Buryatia

Buryatia functions as a cultural and ecological refugium—preserving both Buddhist traditions that survived Soviet suppression and 60% of Lake Baikal's shoreline, Earth's deepest, oldest, and most voluminous freshwater lake. The Ivolginsky Datsan, opened in 1945 as the USSR's only permitted Buddhist center, anchored a spiritual tradition that Empress Elizabeth first recognized as an official Russian religion in 1741. Today, Buryatia remains one of only three Buddhist republics in Russia, alongside Tuva and Kalmykia.

The Buryat people represent an ethnic blend of Mongol, Turkic, and Tungusic ancestry, maintaining close cultural ties across the border with Mongolia. The Trans-Siberian Railroad branch from the capital Ulan-Ude to Ulaanbaatar carries this connection into infrastructure. Traditional shamanism persists alongside Buddhism, creating a syncretic spiritual landscape that makes the region a cultural endemic—found nowhere else in precisely this form. The local economy combines industrial-agrarian activities: mining (gold, tungsten, molybdenum, nickel), timber processing at the Selenginsky Pulp Mill, and pastoral agriculture descended from nomadic traditions.

Lake Baikal holds UNESCO World Heritage status (1996) and receives special federal protection. The lake's ecosystem contains over 2,500 species, more than half endemic—found nowhere else on Earth. Buryatia serves as the model territory for Baikal preservation, balancing tourism development with conservation. Trade extends to China, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Slovakia, UAE, Vietnam, Argentina, and Brazil. The region's tourism potential centers on Baikal's sacred status: Buryats consider the lake sacred, and visitors increasingly seek both its natural grandeur and the republic's Buddhist heritage.