The history of the public fund «Uly Takzym» began in 1989 as the ecological movement «Ulytau». Movement activists opposed the planned construction of military training grounds and other military facilities in the area. This goal has been achieved by the movement.

On the initiative of the residents of the Ulytau region, scientists and experts, this public movement was transformed on April 30, 2009 into the Public Fund «Uly Takzym». At the moment, the founders of the Fund are natives of the region and managers in the field of culture: Salykova Balgyn Umirzakovna (born 1977) and Elena Aleksandrovna Beidel (born in 1965).

The main activity of the “Uly Taғzym” foundation is aimed at studying, preserving and popularizing the natural, historical, cultural and spiritual heritage of the Ulytau region. The ideological inspirer of the Fund is the local historian Bakhtiyar Saparbekovich Kozhakhmetov (born in 1962).

The Ulytau district itself is an administrative unit of the Karaganda region of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The total area of the district is 121 600 km2 with a population of over 12 590 people. Ulytau is a special territory with unique natural, historical and cultural resources. Its territory combines a mountain-hill massif with a vast forest-steppe zone, where a variety of flora and fauna are presented. Here are found rare and medicinal plant species, as well as endangered species of animals and birds. According to archaeological data, the territory of the region was developed by ancient people in the Paleolithic era. In Ulytau, 636 historical and cultural monuments of different times were officially recorded. These are numerous burial mounds, necropolises, mausoleums of the Begazy-Dandybaev culture, rock paintings, petroglyphs, mines, metallurgical furnaces, in which copper, tin, silver, gold, and other ancient monuments were smelted. Of these, only 282 monuments are included in the state register.

In the minds of the Kazakhs, the territory of the region is identified as a sacred place, which is reflected in the toponym itself: «Ulytau» — «Great mountains». Many natural (Terekty-Auliye, Mount Aulietau, healing springs and others) and man-made objects (the mausoleum of Jochi Khan, Alash Khan and others) of the region have been places of pilgrimage since ancient times and objects of eco-tourist routes today.

In connection with the designated, priority goals and objectives of the «Uly Taғzym» Foundation are:

• Research of the natural, tangible and intangible heritage of the region, including archaeological and restoration work of historical and cultural monuments and the improvement of their territories, as well as field work on natural objects, collection of museum collections (archaeological and ethnographic artifacts) and the identification, identification, inventory of elements of the ICN;
• Organization and participation in a variety of local initiatives and projects for the protection and promotion of the natural, tangible and intangible cultural heritage of the region, including a wide range of the public at the regional, national and international levels.
  The public fund «Uly Taғzym» is an association of interested persons from the local community (elders of the region), local historians, historians, archaeologists, ecologists, folklorists, school teachers and university professors, journalists, representatives of tourist clusters, patrons and many others.

The Foundation is already a well-known non-profit organization in the republic that seeks to expand international cooperation. Relations have been established with Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkey and a number of other countries.

The Fund’s portfolio includes such major events as the annual ethnic festivals «Tersakkan Spring», «Ulytau kymyzy», «Kokmaisa» and others, where not only local residents and the population of the republic take part, but also guests from America, Hungary, Germany, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania and others countries.

Such festivals are one of the ways to demonstrate the natural, tangible and intangible cultural heritage of the region, its transmission and education of young people, as well as the popularization of new directions of historical and ecological tourism in the republic.

One of the striking examples of the Fund’s activities in collaboration with the local population and the National Natural and Historical-Cultural Museum-Reserve «Ulytau» is the inclusion of «Traditional spring rituals of Kazakh horse breeders: aigyr kosu, kymyz muryndyk and biye baylau» in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO (Mauritius , 2018).

The Foundation sees its main mission in promoting further study, preservation and popularization of the natural, historical, cultural and spiritual heritage of Ulytau through the implementation of a complex of financial, organizational and creative activities, as well as comprehensive support of the local community in initiatives for sustainable development of the region.