A landscape simulation was designed and tested in Viengkham, a mountainous district in the north of Lao PDR. This social learning process was introduced by researchers affiliated with national research institutions to improve land use planning practices and increase the ownership of local people in the planning process. Twelve members of the village land management committees participated in the role play called “PLUP Fiction,” which is part of a stepwise process of participatory land use planning (PLUP). This article introduces the principles of land zoning, the sequence of events presented during the role play session, and the lessons learned from a series of experiments conducted in remote upland villages. The villagers gained an increased understanding of the issues at stake during a zoning process, thus demonstrating the relevance of this learning simulation tool. They were able to explore different zoning options, assess their respective advantages and constraints, and gradually improve their understanding of the consequences of land zoning on the environmental and economic values of the resulting landscape. The villagers also felt empowered by their newly acquired knowledge and well disposed toward negotiations to improve their current land use through more realistic plans. Long-term environmental concerns (ie biodiversity and carbon values) were fully integrated with shorter-term economic considerations in the collective decision-making process. Furthermore, “PLUP Fiction” has become a key tool for fully involving local communities in Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) through negotiations that are taking place during a land use planning process.

The provincial government of British Columbia (BC) has proactively pursued resort development opportunities in its interior towns. Traditionally dependent on extractive industries such as forestry and mining, many interior mountain communities in BC are increasingly looking toward tourism and resort-induced economic opportunities. Fueled by the movement of amenity seekers, primarily from urban areas, resort development in mountain communities has triggered several internal and external pressures. This exploratory study examines growth trends in the mountain resort industry in 5 communities in BC: Fernie, Golden, Kimberley, Rossland, and Revelstoke. The analysis is based on secondary data, followed by field visits during the months of June and July 2006, which included 30 qualitative interviews with the mayors, planners, residents, and other stakeholders in the tourism and resort sectors. Research results indicate a significant growth in resort-induced development, primarily to attract second home owners and seasonal tourists. The development of mountain resorts may be characterized as enclavic, where almost all resorts are physically separate from the towns. This has given rise to gentrified communities, and it has posed planning and destination management challenges. The study concludes that local-level planning capacity needs to be greatly improved to address issues that are much broader in scope and require collaborative approaches to address the conflicting needs of the various stakeholders.

Poverty and household food security are much debated issues in development literature, and women's contributions to food and economic security have received attention for the last 15 years. Collection of natural resources is usually carried out entirely by women in developing countries, particularly in fragile and rugged mountain environments. Our study in the Garwhal Himalaya attempted to monetize this unpaid work by women through a survey conducted by researchers of time use on a recall basis for the last 7 days. The value of women's contributions was then computed by 2 methods: opportunity costs and output method. The results show that women are at the forefront of food and economic security and in some cases are breadwinners. Policies must address the specific problems of fodder and fuelwood collection in mountains by promoting renewable and nonconventional energy resources such as biogas and solar energy and by involving women in grassroots participation. This will significantly lessen the drudgery of women's work.

Five years after the 2005 Pakistan earthquake that triggered multiple mass movements, landslides continue to pose a threat to the population of Azad Kashmir, especially during heavy monsoon rains. The thousands of landslides that were triggered by the 7.6 magnitude earthquake in 2005 were not just due to a natural phenomenon but largely induced by human activities, namely, road building, grazing, and deforestation. The damage caused by the landslides in the study area (381 km²) is estimated at 3.6 times the annual public works budget of Azad Kashmir for 2005 of US$ 1 million. In addition to human suffering, this cost constitutes a significant economic setback to the region that could have been reduced through improved land use and risk management. This article describes interdisciplinary research conducted 18 months after the earthquake to provide a more systemic approach to understanding risks posed by landslides, including the physical, environmental, and human contexts. The goal of this research is twofold: to present empirical data on the social, geological, and environmental contexts in which widespread landslides occurred following the 2005 earthquake; and, second, to describe straightforward methods that can be used for integrated landslide risk assessments in data-poor environments. The article analyzes limitations of the methodologies and challenges for conducting interdisciplinary research that integrates both social and physical data. This research concludes that reducing landslide risk is ultimately a management issue, based in land use decisions and governance.

Though glacial lake outburst floods have become an urgent issue on the Tibetan Plateau, no standardized methods have been proposed so far to identify and prioritize potentially dangerous glacial lakes (PDGLs). Here, we developed a first-order approach to identify PDGLs in the Boshula Mountain Range, southeastern Tibetan Plateau. Five variables—mother glacier area, distance between lake and glacier terminus, slope between lake and glacier, mean slope of moraine dam, and mother glacier snout steepness—were selected to identify PDGLs on the basis of four criteria we suggested. A fuzzy consistent matrix method was then applied to determine the weight of variables, and characteristic statistical values were used as thresholds to classify each variable. Out of 78 moraine-dammed lakes studied, we identified 8 glacial lakes as potentially very highly dangerous. We also validated our approach with 6 drained glacial lakes inside and outside our study area. Successfully identifying them as potentially very highly and/or highly dangerous lakes demonstrates the validity of the method.

The aims of this study were to describe the biometrics and the spatial and age structure of a population of Norway spruce, to compare vertically connected sections of the timberline ecotone, and to assess the possibility of regeneration of a Norway spruce population under the conditions of the ecotone developing above the former pastoral timberline in the Hrubý Jeseník Mountains, Czech Republic. In the first stage, we established the age of the populations by means of an age–girth nonlinear regression model in a research polygon (RP) with an area of 3.5 ha. The degree of coverage was determined by using geographic information system methods. The total number of cones in the RP was counted, and 50 cones were taken for laboratory investigation of their germination capacity and the number of seeds per cone. The distribution of trees in clonal generations was examined for 10 clonal groups, and the characteristics of layering were explored by measuring the preserved layered branches. To verify the trends found in the first stage of research, we conducted an analysis of the age of all specimens on 8 control plots (50 m × 30 m) in other parts of the mountain range. The results show that the timberline ecotone is rising gradually and that the forest-free area may become significantly reduced. Up to 3 generations of trees of clonal origin were found in the RP. A greater intensity of vegetative regeneration was observed in the upper section of the RP. Moreover, the seed-based regeneration proved to be successful in the RP, and living, germinating seeds were found even in the top parts of the RP.

Exclusion of grazing animals and tree plantations are 2 methods that have been used for restoration of degraded lands in tropical semiarid areas. These 2 options can foster secondary forest succession by improving soil conditions, attracting seed-dispersal agents, and modifying microclimate for understory growth. We compared native woody plant diversity and soil chemical and physical attributes under exclosure and on Eucalyptus globulus (EGP) and Cupressus lusitanica (CLP) plantations. Vegetation data were collected by an inventory of stands with circular plots of 5.64 m radius, and soil samples were collected from the 4 corners and center of 20 × 20 m plots. As a result, 15 native woody plant species belonging to 13 families were recorded. Importance value index (IVI), Shannon-Wiener, Simpson's diversity, and species richness were higher in the exclosure, followed by EGP and CLP. Contents of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen showed significance difference and were highest in the exclosure, followed by CLP, EGP, and grazing land. Although the difference was not significant, an increasing trend was observed for cation exchange capacity and K . Bulk density was highest on the grazing land, followed by EGP, CLP, and exclosure. Our results suggest that degraded land reclamation can be achieved with plantation of rapidly growing tree species as well as exclosure. However, native woody species diversity and improved soil attributes are better achieved with exclosure. Exclosures can be established interspersed strategically with single- or mixed-species plantations to facilitate restoration of native vegetation. However, it is important to conduct further research on the comparative advantage of enrichment planting of exclosures with preferred tree species or exclosures interspersed within blocks of plantation.

Western Himalayan alpine pastures are among the most diverse ecological locations on the globe. Four alpine pastures were investigated to study species distribution patterns, richness, similarity, and community structure in Bagh District, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. Four communities, Poa–Primula–Sibbaldia, Primula–Caltha–Primula, Poa alpina–Poa pratensis–Scirpus, and Sibbaldia–Poa–Scirpus, were identified on the basis of an importance value index. The average value of species richness was 1.42; Simpson's and Shannon–Wiener's diversity values were 3.13 and 0.91, respectively; the degree of maturity index was 44.1; and species evenness was 0.901. Local alpine flora was dominated by a hemicriptophytic life form with microphyllous leaf spectra. The species–environment correlation was analyzed using canonical correspondence analysis. A negative correlation of both diversity and richness was revealed with altitudinal gradient. Anthropogenic disturbances showed a significant negative impact on distribution of medicinal and palatable species. Unpalatable species dominated the local flora, indicating the heavy grazing pressure in the area. Development and implementation of regional conservation strategies are recommended to protect the threatened Himalayan alpine biodiversity.

Plant species diversity was surveyed in the northern Gaoligong Mountains of western Yunnan, China, from 1990 to 2006. During the floristic surveys of seed plants, 2514 native species and 302 varieties (or subspecies) belonging to 778 genera in 171 families were recorded. We also found that 12 families are endemic to eastern Asia, 14 genera and 1232 taxa are endemic to China, and 132 taxa are endemic to the northern Gaoligong Mountains. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List Categories and Criteria, 25 threatened taxa identified in the survey are endemic to this region. The flora is rich because of the role the northern Gaoligong Mountains played as a center of species diversification during the uplift of the eastern rim of the Tibetan Plateau in the Quaternary and as a refuge during the last glacial maximum. Unfortunately, this biodiversity faces massive threats because of the combined effect of habitat destruction or fragmentation and overexploitation of natural resources. Taking into consideration that human population growth will further increase pressure on this biodiversity in the near future, we suggest that conservation priority be given to the endemic plants, as well as to the habitats of primarily evergreen broad-leaved forest, coniferous broad-leaved mixed forest, and alpine shrub and meadows.

The Centre for Mountain Studies was established at Perth College, Scotland, in August 2000, with the objective of creating a center of excellence for work in mountain areas within a new University of the Highlands and Islands.

Changbai Mountain, the highest mountain in the east of the Eurasian Continent, is covered with a wide range of distinct altitudinal vegetation types featuring the Earth's richest biodiversity in the cool temperate zone. However, some development trends on Changbai Mountain urgently require the launching of innovative policies and actions for sustainable forest conservation on Changbai Mountain. This paper provides an overview of forest conservation issues in the area: it summarizes the ecological significance of forest vegetation on Changbai Mountain, reviews historic forest utilization and protection in the region, and discusses forest conservation measures that exist on Changbai Mountain. The paper also describes specific civilization-based economic developments, including deforestation, logging, non-wood product collection, and tourism, which threaten forest sustainability inside and around protected areas on Changbai Mountain. We propose that forest ecosystem management should be implemented outside the designated protected areas and human pressure should be reduced inside nature reserves on Changbai Mountain. Landscape and ecosystem approaches should be used to promote forest conservation at the mountain level. In addition, China and North Korea (DPRK) need to engage in multiscale, multidisciplinary, and multistakeholder transboundary conservation efforts.