Pastoralism and Rangeland Management on the Tibetan Plateau in ...

Photo 1: The Tibetan Plateau a challenging l<strong>and</strong>scape for pastoralists <strong>and</strong> an
unique environment composed of pastures <strong>and</strong> settlements, arid regions, lakes,
vast plateaux <strong>and</strong> high mountains
(photograph © Hermann Kreutzmann September 12, 2000)
The Tibetan Plateau is a specific case in point for adaptation to extreme living
conditions (Photo 1), where great distances need to be covered to utilise
valuable pasture resources on a highly elevated plateau. These pastoralists have
faced all kinds of challenges in order to make survival possible. Here the second
perspective becomes valid. Besides climate change, the challenges posed by history
<strong>and</strong> society need to be considered <strong>and</strong> assessed. Global change scenarios
are part of our daily life. The significant economic development in the PR of
China cannot be attributed to domestic modernisation strategies alone. China
is embedded in the global economy as a major player. This new role implies that
global developments are affecting all layers of society, including pastoralists.
The people on the Tibetan Plateau have a longst<strong>and</strong>ing record as actors, stakeholders
<strong>and</strong> recipients of external interventions in the guise of modernisation
<strong>and</strong> reform. The latest developments are related to the policies of eco-shelter
on the Tibetan Plateau. Consequently our workshop focused on two aspects:
<strong>Pastoralism</strong> <strong>and</strong> rangel<strong>and</strong> management in relation to the dem<strong>and</strong>s of nature
protection <strong>and</strong> modernisation of pastoralists’ lifestyles. As these two aspects are
strongly interrelated, the general question was raised whether there is a need for
a reconciliation between them or how to create a win-win position in order to
avoid environmental degradation <strong>and</strong> to enable pastoralists to pursue a viable
strategy of resource utilisation in the context of a prospering society.
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