Conclusions: Major Problems and Prospects of Sustainable Livelihoods

Abstract

Highlands and mountains are vital economic and ecological resources, high in both biodiversity and minerals. Although they occupy only one-fifth of the earth’s land surface (Pratt and Shilling 2002) and house only a tenth of its human population, more than half of the world’s population is reliant on them (Earth Summit—Agenda 21, 1992), in particular, for water resources and agriculture biodiversity for food production. The world’s poor lives in mountain regions, particularly in the developing countries. Mountain landforms trigger precipitation, which, coupled with the water-storage capacity of glaciers, give them a vital hydrological role. Three billion people in Pakistan, India, Nepal, China and the Indochinese peninsula depend on rivers that flow from the Himalayas. Similarly, many millions rely on the headwaters of the Amazon in the Andes, and on the Nile and Congo rivers, which flow from the East African highlands. In addition to water, 38 % of the world’s forest is located in the mountain areas. Mountains are the prime source of most minerals; they house a large portion of the earth’s biodiversity, representing some 40 % of the critical biodiversity surface area (Pratt and Shilling 2002). Mountains are also home to many indigenous peoples with their valuable cultures and indigenous knowledge. Notwithstanding the enormous importance of these regions, many highland and mountain communities remain isolated, trapped in poverty and live at the margins of society. Mountain people are generally isolated and depend on highly diverse indigenous cultures and knowledge for their livelihood and management of natural resources.