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

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local communities must be able to share equitably in the benefits
of ecotourism; income for local people should be guaranteed <strong>and</strong>
sustainable
4 The Need for a Shift in “mental Models”
“Mental model” or the way people perceive nature <strong>and</strong> natural resource, often
shapes the way human beings interact with their environment. For the sustainable
use <strong>and</strong> management of the rangel<strong>and</strong> resources, a shift of such “mental
model” is needed in the following aspects that are of most relevance to the topic
of this paper:
4.1 From “pastoral economy” to “rangel<strong>and</strong> economy”
As is pointed out previously, the primary <strong>and</strong> traditional use of the rangel<strong>and</strong>s
is for livestock production, through either sedentary management or nomadic
pastoralism or a combination of both. For most of decision-makers, rangel<strong>and</strong>s
are still nothing but marginal resources that are only good for human beings
as a supplier of fodder for domestic animals. Therefore, all the programmes,
investments <strong>and</strong> policies for rangel<strong>and</strong> areas are focused on how to obtain the
maximum output of livestock products.
However, even with the best technological interventions, there is a limit to the
potential of the traditional pastoral use for livestock production as it is eventually
determined by the primary productivity of the rangel<strong>and</strong>s ecosystem which
has been witnessing increasing degradation across the globe in recent decades.
With the increase of human population both within <strong>and</strong> without the pastoral
areas, the number of domestic animals has seen a steady increase globally over
the past centuries. Even though technological advancement has to some degree
increased the efficiency of rangel<strong>and</strong> use, this increase could not compensate
for the increase in fodder dem<strong>and</strong> as a result of the greater animal number
because the primary productivity of the rangel<strong>and</strong>s of the world has seen little
increase <strong>and</strong> has actually in many cases decreased due to over-grazing, l<strong>and</strong>
conversion or climate change. The sustainability <strong>and</strong> economic viability of
traditional pastoralism is further weakened by negative impacts from external
market competition <strong>and</strong> modernity process,
Therefore, if we wish to continue increasing the incomes of the pastoralists
<strong>and</strong> enhance the resilience of pastoral communities, we have to think beyond
livestock production. More efforts should be made to cash on the multifunctionalities
of the rangel<strong>and</strong> resources as a provider of multiple public goods
<strong>and</strong> services. To achieve this, there is an urgent need for a shift from a Pastoral