Brutal Soviet-era farming practices severely damaged the Aral Sea's delicate ecosystem. Now ecologists are planting saplings in the Aralkum Desert to bring trees to where water once lapped.

The loss of the Aral Sea in central Asia is an ecological disaster. Toxic chemicals in the exposed sea bed have caused widespread health problems. Can an ambitious project to plant millions of ...

“This is discrimination due to geographic location,” says Kamalov. “That water belongs to the Aral.” Every expert I interviewed predicted that Uzbekistan’s portion of the Aral Sea would ...