By the fact of own spatial existence, the each object (process, phenomenon) forms a multilevel system, promoting differentiation and concentration. The necessity to study the territorial projection of international economic relations of various sizes is emphasized. The geography of foreign economic relations at three spatial levels is studied: 1) macrolevel (international trade), 2) mesolevel (foreign economic relations of Russia), 3) microlevel (foreign economic relations of the federal subject – the Republic of Bashkortostan). Combining these results allows us to establish interrelations, interdependencies between geographical levels that most fully reveal the basis of the functioning of the international division of labor. The application of territorial approach to studying foreign economic relations of countries and regions allows us to disclose the regularities of geographical division of labor, to reveal the cause-and-effect relationships of the functioning of international trade, the foreign trade of countries and individual administrative units of states, uniting them into a single system. Understanding the mechanisms of formation of this system gives rise to prospects to effectively manage it.

The theoretical issues of territorial organization of local self-government are considered, a definition of this category is proposed. It is stated that the territorial organization of local self-government in general should correspond to the hierarchy of the prevailing settlement systems and local communities. Factors, intermediate results and processes of transformation of territorial organization of local self-government in Russia’s regions in 2009–2016 are considered in details (after the finishing of the transition period of local self-government reform). The main source of information is the Rosstat data. Forms of transformation of municipalities of the first and second territorial levels are identified. The growing practice of transforming municipal districts in urban districts and minimizing the number of settlements composed municipal districts is criticized. Examples of new forms of territorial organization of local government in Russia’s regions are given. The conclusion of the inevitable variety of regional forms of territorial organization of local self-government in modern Russia is made.

The paper concerns changes in air transport connectivity of Russia’s territory for the period of 1990–2015 by aggregating of adjacent airports and air hubs in 20 air clusters. The dynamics of air passenger traffic between large cities is considered as an indicator of changes in the territorial structure of the economy and population distribution in the country. Analysis has shown that disintegration of a complex, polycentric, and well-developed system of neighboring air links has taken place in post-Soviet Russia. Structure of this system has become much simpler, with pronounced overcentralization of Moscow (instead of the previous centralization) and reduction of the power of attraction of secondand third-order interregional centers. Divisional fragmentation and shrinkage of the socioeconomic space in not only the Asian but also the European part of the country have occurred. Current Russian airline system is characterized by weak neighborhood connectivity. A slow disintegration process between the western and eastern parts of the country is going.

Paleoclimatic reconstruction carried out using tree-ring chronology, whose data are reposited in the International Tree-Ring Data Bank (ITRDB). Chronologies are located in the immediate vicinity of the northern latitudinal timberline, where the climatic signal is most represented. Individual tree-ring chronologies are combined into five regional (Kola Peninsula, Yamal Peninsula, Taimyr Peninsula, Lena River mouth, Indigirka River mouth). In all the study regions summer temperatures during the 20th century have been higher than the average value for 500 years. However, in some areas (Kola Peninsula, the mouth of the rivers Lena and Indigirka) for 16–19th centuries there were short warming periods (20–30 years), the summer air temperatures of which can be compared with the modern. And in the Lena River mouth the summer temperature at the beginning of the 18th century were even higher than in the instrumental period. In addition, in these areas, speed of increasing temperatures in the 20th century is not higher than in pre-industrial period. Comparison of climate change with the dynamics of solar activity showed that the Maunder minimum is clearly evidenced only in the west of Eurasia (Kola Peninsula). The Dalton minimum is fixed in all investigated areas. In general, it can be said that such a climate-forming factor as solar activity was not dominant in the temperature regime of warm seasons in the north of Eurasia for the past 500 years.

Cores of Scots pine growing in northern taiga on the northern limit of distribution in lichen pine forests in the Pechora River basin are collected with purpose to reveal most suitable for climatic reconstructions tree-ring parameters. Tree-ring width has a weak mixed signal of temperature and precipitations of previous and current years and, therefore, cannot be used for reconstruction. Maximum optical density has shown a very perspective temperature signal for reconstruction in area under study. Northern island pine forests have stronger signal, in comparison with the pine forests growing in 100 km to the south, in a zone of continuous pine forest. Reconstruction of June–August temperature for the last 200 years is executed for the first time. The obtained data have correlated with the reconstruction by chronologies of the maximal density of pine from Fennoskandia and Eurasia.

The approbation of the DNDC (DeNitrification-DeComposition) model was done with the aim to estimate an opportunity of model using for analysis of carbon and nitrogen exchange and greenhouse gases dynamics in agroecosystems of arable soils in the Central Non-Chernozem Zone of Russia. The research can be divided into two blocks: estimation of model sensitivity and its verification on the base of field experiments data and statistical calculations. This article presents the results of analysis of model sensitivity to input parameters change. It is shown that in the Russian Non-Chernozem Zone the amount of fertilizers is the most important factor influencing on regional carbon and nitrogen biogeochemical cycles and the greenhouse gases emission. Annual increase of soil organic carbon content depends on weather conditions and soil texture (clay fraction). Carbon dioxide emission isensitive to crops biological characteristics and tillage intensity. According to modeling data, in the Non-Chernozem Zone’s agrocenoses methane is primarily absorbed by soil. The concentration of nitrous oxide is more sensitive to tillage and fertilizing than to amount of precipitation, and its annual values fluctuate in a small range.

The scientific, legal and economic prerequisites of development and golden age of the Black Sea fishery in the Soviet Union in the second half of the 20th century prior to “perestroika” (reconstruction) and demise of theSoviet Union have been investigated. From 1950 to 1988 the total annual fish production in the Black Sea by the Soviet Union increased from 32200 t (the early 1950s) to 56000 t (end of the 1950s), 60000–70000 t (1960s), 75000–96000 t (the early 1970s), 150000 t (end of the 1970s), 200000–250000 t (the 1980s). Based on the geographic and ecological analysis of fishery resources, the catch structure and production output of the main fishery objects were estimated; the periods with predominance of different highpriority fishery objects were identified; the mechanisms, chronology and causes of their change (succession) were established: Black Sea anchovy and small scad (1945–the early 1950s); bonito, large scad, bluefish, chub mackerel and some low-abundant but valuable by their tastiness fish species, including surmullet, mullets, sturgeons, Black Sea turbot (the early 1950s – the late 1960s); Black Sea anchovy, sprat, small scad, Black Sea whiting, spiny dogfish, skates (1970–1985). The economic and ecological consequences of natural and anthropogenic changes, which resulted in crisis of fishery industry in 1989–1991 and its transition to depressive state in the late 20th century, were assessed.

Based on the analysis of materials of the General Land Survey and Soil map ofNizhny Novgorodprovince (gubernia) features of land use in Balakhna uezd in the 18th century were studied. The characteristic of the cartographic materials of the General Land Survey containing information about natural resources use is given, the table of the conventional signs of this period is provided. Methods of field researches of land surveying and the related distortions in the created images are described. The algorithm of serial preparation of historical maps and work with digital materials and methods of the GIS analysis is given. It is shown that in the Balakhna uezd ofNizhny Novgorodgubernia nine types of land grounds were allocated. The territory of the uezd in the second half of the 18th century was plowed more than for 30%, forest occupied a half of the area, swamp – over 10%. Agriculture in a northern part of the uezd, where about a half of the territory accounted for arable lands, was most developed, and other part was occupied by the forest. Arable lands settled down on the most favorable soils – it is, according to the Soil map of 1886, light loams, floodplain soils, sandy loams and clay sands, that corresponds on the Soil Russian Soviet Federated Socialistic Republic map of 1988 to gray forest, soddy podzolic, soddy podzolic iron illuvial and floodplain soils.Forestin the uezd occupied quartz and clay sands (soddy podzolic, soddy podzolic iron illuvial soils, podzols), partly marsh and floodplain soils.

Four long-established environmental and cultural phenomena and a new one are characterized in the article. These phenomena represent some recurring patterns of activity or behavior of people, significantly altering the course of natural processes. They are generated by stable combinations of environmental conflicts inherent certain forms of nature management and economic activities such as land use, forest use, water use, waste management and others. Their transformative eff on the landscapes of theUnzhaRivervalley is shown on concrete examples. They illustrate the consequences of the barbaric forest use, reckless industrialization and decline of agriculture. The effect of these phenomena is extended to many territories of the Near North. It is typical for the nature management inRussiafor many years. The most longstanding phenomenon is a predatory forest use and its corollary, the shallowing of rivers. Phenomenon of antienvironmental industrialization acts also for a long time. The main conflicts that shape these phenomena are contradictions between the increase in material well-being of people and the violation of their health as a result of deterioration of the ecological situation. More youthful phenomenon of the destruction and running wild of the traditional rural landscape is conditioned by not so much environmental, how socioeconomic conflicts. A new phenomenon is formed as a consequence of the explicit conflict of environmental and cultural interests of two groups of population – decreasing indigenous peasant population and increasing dachas.

The article is devoted to analysis of results of the International scientific conference “Geopolitical Processes in the Contemporary Eurasian Space” which took place in Banja-Luka, the capital of the Republic Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina, on the 1st–3rd June 2017. The special attention is paid to evaluation of prospects of the international cooperation of the Eurasian countries in resolution of the vast circle of geopolitical, geoeconomic and sociocultural problems.