35-year-old Danabekova Aigerim earned her bachelor's in International Relations at the Eurasian National University in Kazakhstan. Driven by her love for history and China's status as a long-standing neighbor, she intuitively chose China as her major track in her junior year.

Prioritizing Chinese language mastery to understand China, Aigerim studied at her university's Confucius Institute, taking three extra classes weekly. Her dedication paid off in her second year with an HSK (Chinese Proficiency Test) pass and a Confucius Institute Scholarship.

Aigerim and her academic supervisor

In 2013, Aigerim relocated to Xi'an, completing her master's at Xi'an International Studies University and her doctorate at Shaanxi Normal University. By July 2023, she had successfully joined Shaanxi Normal University as a foreign teacher, instructing Russian Literature, Linguistics, and Translation after a rigorous selection process.

Aigerim during working

In October 2014, while pursuing her master's, Aigerim began volunteering at the International Conservation Center in Xi'an (IICC-X) at the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).

By then, the joint World Heritage nomination by China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan—"Silk Road: The Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor," a joint application—had been successfully inscribed, prompting a surge in international exchanges. Aigerim's first task was to serve as a Russian interpreter for a Tajik archaeologist on a research visit to Xi'an.

Faced with specialized terms across history, archaeology, cultural relics, and murals, Aigerim quickly acquired expertise in heritage conservation, cultural relic restoration, and Xi'an's World Heritage sites, excelling at the challenging work.

 

Aigerim participating in a cultural exchange event

In 2017, Aigerim officially joined the Center as a staff member. In late November, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to China, a multi-regional collaborative cultural relics exhibition, "Miles upon Miles: World Heritage along the Silk Road" was held in Hong Kong. As the secretariat of the Silk Road China-Kazakhstan-Kyrgyzstan Joint Nomination Coordination Committee, the IICC-X participated in many of the jobs.

During the preparation period, Aigerim, then Deputy Director of the center's Secretariat, traveled to Astana, Almaty (Kazakhstan), and Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) to coordinate cultural relic selection with local institutions for the exhibition.

Seeing exquisite cultural relics from China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan displayed together at the opening ceremony, which revived the Silk Road's grand history, Aigerim was profoundly moved by the power of people-to-people bonds.

Aigerim sharing her PPT at the "Parent Class"

Since marrying her Indian husband in Xi'an in 2019, Aigerim now has a kindergarten-aged daughter. When invited to give a "Parent Class", she prepared a PPT and cooked traditional Kazakh baursak with her mother.

With the Belt and Road Initiative deepening, Aigerim has seen China-Kazakhstan ties flourish. Xi'an exemplifies this practical cooperation, from freight trains and air links to the Kazakh Consulate and university campuses. To Aigerim, her two homelands now feel closer than ever.