Course:CONS370/Projects/Community Forestry in collaboration with Ethnic Minorities in Western China

This review paper attempts to summarize and analyze the community forestry in collaboration with ethnic minorities in western China through cases from CONS370 and FRST370. Among the existing cases, the forestry development of ethnic minority communities in western China has made certain achievements, mainly in terms of economic development. However, some ethnic minorities are facing the perplexity of loss of traditional culture and future development. These problems are solvable, and even different cases can provide solutions to other cases. How to make rational use of natural resources and how to improve the voice and participation of ethnic minorities is the focus. Therefore, this review paper will compare the advantages and disadvantages of different cases and aim to provide some suggestions on the future community forestry of ethnic minorities in western China.

Keywords: ethnic minority; community forestry; eco-tourism; collaboration; poverty alleviation; China.

Introduction

This picture shows the area of where the review paper included.

China has ethnic diversity and cultural diversity. In western China, especially the southwest region, different ethnic minorities have developed their own unique community forestry in accordance with local conditions. The community forestry of many ethnic minorities has been developed for thousands of years or more, and the local ecological environment and species diversity have been in a stable and sustainable state for a long time. After the reform and opening up, China's policies and society have undergone tremendous changes, and the economy has developed rapidly. How to develop the community economy on the basis of protecting the forestry and cultural stability of ethnic minority communities is an important issue for the Chinese government. In recent years, the Chinese government has played a positive role in community forestry policies and counterpart support for ethnic minorities. Including the huge increase in the income level of ethnic minority communities and the "rescue" of some ethnic minority cultures that are disappearing. However, due to the lack of experience and the insufficient level of local government managers, there are still some problems in minority community forestry. For example, the traditional production methods of ethnic minorities have been hindered due to forest protection, or government departments have insufficient decentralization to ethnic minority communities. In addition, the economic development of some areas is still relatively backward. Many CONS370 and FRST370 course projects have conducted research on the community forestry of ethnic minorities in western China, and found corresponding problems and provided certain solutions. After a comprehensive comparison, the cases have a strong mutual reference, that is, the excellent policies or development models in some cases can be copied to other cases. This article analyzes and summarizes different cases, puts forward the advantages and disadvantages of the development of community forestry of ethnic minorities in western China as a whole at the emergence stage. Then try to put forward some overall suggestions for the existing disadvantages.

Background

China is composed of 56 ethnic groups. The Han ethnic group is the main population in China, accounting for 91.5% of the total population, and 55 ethnic minorities occupy 8.5%. Although the minority population in China is smaller than that of the Han nationality, it still reaches a scale of more than 100 million, which is larger than the population of most countries. In addition, each ethnic minority in China has its own unique culture, which is made up of their history and living environment. In western China, there are many ethnic minority settlements. In settlements, ethnic minorities are the main population. They either take a single minority as the main body of the population, or multiple minority groups together constitute the main body of the population. Due to the large differences in the distribution of forest resources in western China, the geographical environment is changeable. Many ethnic minorities have developed their own unique community forestry in the long-term management of agriculture and forestry. Community forestry of ethnic minorities in western China generally has the characteristics of vast area and extremely high forest coverage. This makes community forestry management of ethnic minorities an important part of China's forest management and protection. In the past, many ethnic minorities have developed myths about forests. For example, the "sacred mountain" of the Dong nationality, the "ancestral forest" of the Miao nationality and the "fengshui forest" of the Tujia and Buyi nationality. The development of these forests is strictly restricted. Such thinking makes the local forests conform to the concept of sustainable development, but it also limits the economic development of local ethnic minorities to a certain extent. With the changes in Chinese policies and society since the reform and opening up, the economy has taken off, and the traditional thinking of ethnic minorities has been more or less affected.

After the land reform in 2005, China's land types are mainly divided into three types. State-owned forest, collective forest and family forest. There are also regions that call family forests self-retaining mountains, and both have the same attributes. State-owned forest is a type of forest managed by the government. In state-owned forests, the government has all management rights and ownership. At this stage, the Chinese government mainly planted state-owned forests as public welfare forests and prohibits any form of logging. The purpose is to prevent sandstorms, increase the country's forest coverage, and maintain species diversity and ecological environment diversity. State-owned forests have the highest tree species diversity due to the purpose of use and policies. Collective forests are collectively owned forests, which collectively own the ownership and use rights of the forests. Individuals or families can contract collective forests for production, but the ownership still belongs to the collective. In ethnic minority community forestry, there are also non-timber forest resources that are jointly allocated within collective forests. This requires high community binding and cohesion. The state may also requisition collective forests for public welfare forest afforestation, and the government will provide subsidies to communities based on the area of ​​the requisitioned land. Due to complex forest uses and management models, the diversity of tree species in collective forests is in the middle. Family forest is a kind of forest whose use right belongs to the family (but the ownership still belongs to the collective). Families engaged in agriculture and forestry are free to dispose of this forest, including planting economic tree species or cutting firewood for their own use. This forest provides basic livelihood security and economic benefits for local residents. Since most owners of community forestry will use this kind of forest for production, its species diversity is the lowest.

Cases

Taohua Administrative Village

The article of "Collective management in Taohua Administrative Village of Lijiang, Yunnan Province, China" describes the community forest in Taohua Administrative Village and considers it a typical survey and analysis site. In Taohua Village, the "Bai", "Naxi", "Li", "Pumi" and "Han" ethnic groups share local forests and participate in timber production and other forest resource exploitation. There are certain loopholes in the management of forestry in this community, and there is a “one size fits all” problem in law enforcement. The voice and decision-making power of the local community is not guaranteed and urgently needs to be improved. Local residents obtain economic benefits by cutting timber. In the past, 80% of the grain was purchased from outsiders with the proceeds of timber. Although the local community forests have a high degree of autonomy, due to the country’s laws prohibiting illegal logging, the local legally logged timber has decreased significantly and residents’ incomes have been reduced. This has led to a chain reaction of local community forestry, including illegal logging and severe price cuts (affecting farmers’ income).

Baishuijiang National Nature Reserve

The article of "Community-based Co-management of forest resources in Baishuijiang National Nature Reserve, Gansu, China" mainly describes the development of CBCM in the Baishuijiang Nature Reserve of the Baishuijiang National Nature Reserve Management Bureau (BNNRMB). Including the varieties and results of CBCM projects in 2006-2010, as well as the authors' evaluation of CBCM projects. The article also mentions the use of different studies to analyze the distribution of power among different stakeholders (mainly differences in social background and ethnic differences, also human and animals) and how they use their power and discusses the common governance of different ethnic groups. The CBCM project can significantly resolve differences in the right to speak caused by different ethnic proportions and satisfy the interests of multiple parties. At the same time, the CBCM project has greatly increased the income of local farmers. From 2006 to 2010, the family income level of the Yangkoushan community increased by at least 13.6%, and the family income level of the Lizba community increased by 101%. The income of community households participating in the CBCM project is significantly higher than that of households not participating in the project. In addition, the CBCM project can significantly resolve the contradiction between man and nature. During the implementation period, timber felling was significantly reduced, and ecological protection was also improved. CBCM still has some problems. Related supporting laws are still lacking, making the move may not have long-term viability. The actual rights are still in the hands of BNNRMB, and the villagers have a low degree of autonomy. Local government is lack of professionalism, fund evaluation and project evaluation need to be strengthened.

Jiuzhaigou National Park

Before the establishment of Jiuzhaigou National Park (JNP), local residents were mainly engaged in agriculture and forestry production. The local residents are mainly Tibetans and Qiangs, and they mainly believe in Buddhism. Their culture has a high degree of correlation with the local ecological environment. In the context of Buddhism, local residents have a high degree of awareness of animal protection and forest protection. After the establishment of the park, although the income of local residents has increased significantly, some of their rights have been taken over by outside management agencies. In order to develop tourism, the government has made changes to the local vegetation, which has caused changes in the ecosystem to a certain extent. This is a kind of destruction to the traditional culture of local residents. Outside managers lack experience and lack contact with the local ecological environment. The rights of local residents are insufficient to effectively manage community forests. Although the establishment of Jiuzhaigou National Park has brought economic benefits to local residents, it has also had an impact on their culture and local ecology.

Tongdao Dong Minority Autonomous County

The ownership of land in Tongdao County, Hunan Province has undergone many changes after 1950, and policy continuity is poor at first. Due to policy instability, the local area has experienced several over-logging incidents. However, with the stabilization of government policies and the increase of local community autonomy, local forest management is gradually on the right track. The counterpart cooperation with Changsha City has significantly helped the local Dong and other ethnic minorities to get rid of poverty and become rich. The Dong people have their own unique beliefs in forests. They believe that everything is animist, and they regard the big tree close to their community as a sacred tree. Therefore, in terms of forest management, the Dong people have their own unique rules, which coincide with the concept of sustainable development. At present, local ethnic customs are well preserved, and community rights are relatively stable and protected by law. Aboriginal forestry is protected locally. In addition, the counterparts in Changsha have helped local agricultural and forestry products obtain a good and stable market. Some scientists from the provincial capital also helped local residents to better produce. Forest protection and ecological environment protection have also been significantly improved. However, due to lack of management experience, there are still some problems with local policies. Because of the extremely high local forest coverage (75.55%), the Chinese government established a state-owned forest farm protection area here. Part of the land has been requisitioned for planting public welfare forests, but the compensation given is not satisfactory.

Nangun River Natural Reserve

The Nangun River in Yunnan, China is a national nature reserve, and the Wa ethnic group is the main ethnic group in the area. The Wa people are engaged in agriculture to make a living in the local area, but the local protected wild animals (especially Gibbon & elephants) can cause damage to their farmland. Although the government will provide subsidies to farmers who have suffered losses, the number of subsidies is insufficient to meet the basic needs of residents. The local complex relationship between people and animals and the relationship between government and residents have created a complex system of contradictions. The government needs to use multiple means to cooperate with local communities to solve problems. Asian elephants will go out of the nature reserve and enter the farmland to get food. However, due to government laws and regulations, farmers cannot harm elephants, nor can they enter the nature reserve to obtain more economic benefits. In addition, due to the serious shortage of compensation from the Nangun River Nature Reserve Administration (NRNRA), the average annual compensation is about 100,000 yuan (adjusted for inflation, it is about 30,432 Canadian dollars by 2020). This only accounts for 10% of farmers’ losses, causing dissatisfaction among community residents. Different villages also have their own unique views on NRNRA and nature reserves, and it is difficult to reach a unified view. By contrast, outsider travel companies have made a lot of profits in the local area based on the local ecotourism. This has increased the income of the local community to a certain extent, and also increased the employment of local residents.

Hunan Province

The Dong nationality is a Chinese minority with a long history in Hunan province. In the long history, the Dong nationality has developed its own unique culture of agriculture, forestry, fishery, and animal husbandry. They carried out traditional community forestry production according to local conditions and developed their own social mechanism on this basis. The Dong culture completely retains the form of the traditional agricultural culture in the mountainous area, with rich connotations and uninterrupted inheritance. In addition to the external explicit cultural form, there are also internal cultural factors. The social structure, social system, interpersonal relationship, and lifestyle have retained their original appearance. The community forestry model of the Dong nationality is in line with the sustainable development goals and can provide reference for the Chinese government's forest governance at this stage, especially the aboriginal forest governance. Due to the advent of the Internet age, population mobility has intensified. Traditional culture is being challenged, and the traditional social organization "Dong funds" of the Dong people is disappearing. The government and local communities recognized this and try to strengthen cultural protection. This helps maintain the integrity of aboriginal forestry and the integrity of Dong culture.

Guizhou Province

The Miao people rely on "slash and burn" for production and rely on forests for long-term survival. In the traditional concept of the Miao people, ancestors will not enter "another world" after dying but will merge into nature and live with their children and grandchildren for a long time. Therefore, each Miao village has its own protection forest, which provides shelter for the ancestors and protects them from the devil's invasion. However, in recent years, with changes in lifestyle and ideology, the Miao people's emphasis on forests has declined. This article analyzes this and proposes some existing challenges and solutions. Due to the gradual passing of young people and the gradual passing of the older generation, the traditional Miao culture has been strongly impacted by foreign cultures. The new generation no longer attaches much importance to the protection of forests in traditional culture and will cut down for economic benefits. In addition, government policy constraints have impacted some traditional production methods of the Miao nationality. For example, "slash and burn" has been banned to a certain extent. Although the purpose of this policy is to protect forests, local residents need financial resources. How to coordinate the social and economic development needs of the Miao people and the needs of forest protection is very important.

Gaoligongshan Nature Reserve

The population composition of community forest in Gaoligongshan Nature Reserve is mainly Li ethnic group, who are highly dependent on forest resources for production and living. Like most ethnic minority communities, the Li ethnic group in Gaoligong Mountain also has its own unique culture. In the traditional moral concepts of the Li nationality, fairness and justice are very important. So that they share prey or crop harvests with other community members. In addition, they still retain the position of "chief", but compared to actual power, "chief" is more like a spiritual symbol. Because the benefits of the production method are not enough to meet the increasing economic needs of the community, the community also has some problems. After the establishment of the nature reserve, the traditional way of life of the Li nationality was also subject to some restrictions. In the past, they often entered the protected area to harvest some non-timber forest resources, but these behaviors are now largely restricted. Therefore, some local residents illegally cut down trees in the reserve or conduct poaching in order to trade with outside buyers to obtain economic benefits. In addition, the rights of women cannot be well protected in the region, and their economic income is obviously lower than that of men. In recent years, the state of economic development has improved. More and more tourists come to the local area for eco-tourism. However, local communities still need stronger economic development momentum.

Mengsong Hani village

The main population of Mengsong is the Hani ethnic group, who carry out aboriginal forestry with ethnic characteristics here. According to the custom of the Hani people, the forests are divided into two types, those that can be felled and those that are strictly protected. Strictly protected forests include sacred forests and refuge forests, where trees cannot be felled. The forest that can be cut is also subject to logging restrictions. Residents can cut timber at will, but only for their own use and cannot be traded. In addition, the Hani people plant a large number of vines, which provides them with building materials and economic benefits. This article analyzes the success and failure of forestry in the Hani community, and puts forward some suggestions for development. The forest management model of the Hani nationality conforms to the concept of joint development and fair distribution. It stabilizes the fairness and justice in the community, and also improves the cohesion within the nation. At the same time, due to strict restrictions on deforestation, the Hani community forestry also fits the concept of sustainable development. Since the reform and opening up, China's policies, society, and economy have developed rapidly. In contrast, the Hani community forestry has not significantly improved economic benefits. Therefore, there are certain contradictions between community members and the government, and some policies cannot be effectively implemented. In particular, aboriginal forestry has limited ability to manage invasive species, which has made the local ecology worse in the past period of time.

Wuling mountainous

The Tujia people are mainly distributed in the Wuling mountainous area at the junction of Hunan, Hubei, Chongqing and Guizhou, where there are very rich forest resources. The Tujia people have a high degree of Sinicization. They use Chinese characters as characters, which makes them have a certain superstition about Feng Shui. Therefore, in their traditional culture, trees in places such as houses, graves and water sources cannot be felled. In addition, the traditional culture of the Tujia people has the custom of planting trees. They plant as many forests as possible while ensuring food production. Therefore, the traditional forest management methods of the Tujia nationality are of great benefit to forest protection and development. This article also introduces the economic sources of the local community and the parts that need to be developed in the future. Wuling Mountain is rich in natural resources, with more than 1,000 available medicinal materials, from which local residents have obtained economic benefits. In addition, eco-tourism has been well developed in the local area, and a large number of tourists have come to the local community to provide jobs.

Achievements

Qianhu Miao Village, Xijiang, Guizhou

At this stage, the ethnic minority communities in western China have made some achievements in forestry, mainly in the development of the community’s economic level and the protection of forest resources. In terms of economic development, the poverty alleviation policies and comprehensive well-off policies promoted by the Chinese government have played a cornerstone role. In the last ten years, the Chinese government has shifted from simply providing cash subsidies to poor households to helping ethnic minorities in poor areas master effective production skills. In the communities of ethnic minorities in the west, the Chinese government has established comprehensive school facilities to provide basic education for local ethnic minorities. Attracting urban teachers with higher salaries to support teaching in the community, and improve the teaching level of local schools. In addition, college entrance examination students in minority communities are admitted with relatively low university scores to improve their chances of receiving higher education. Many ethnic minority college students who have received higher education choose to return to their communities for development. Because of their higher education, they have a high ability to understand and apply policies. Based on these abilities, they can find suitable development methods for their communities based on their ethnic minority cultural characteristics and local community forestry resources. Combined with the financial support of the Chinese government, a large number of non-timber forest resources of ethnic minority community forestry have flowed to all parts of the country. In addition, the counterpart cooperation between cities and ethnic minority communities has also brought advanced production technologies to ethnic minority forestry communities and spread the culture of ethnic minorities to other regions.

The development of ecotourism not only contributes to the economic development of ethnic minority communities, but also provides support for forest protection in local communities. Ecological diversity and species diversity are the foundation of ecotourism, which effectively resolves the contradiction between economic development and ecological protection. Some foreign tourism companies have entered the community forestry of ethnic minorities to develop a cultural-eco-tourism industry with local cultural characteristics. It has stimulated the economic development of ethnic minority communities and provided a large number of jobs. At the same time, cultural protection and cultural inheritance of ethnic minorities are also reflected in this tourism industry.

Problems

Lianbaoyeze, which is near Nianbaoyuze

Although China has made some achievements in the development of forestry in ethnic minority communities, it still has some shortcomings and problems. The main problems are the lack of decision-making power of ethnic minorities, the lagging economic development of some ethnic minority communities, and the possible loss of traditional culture in the future. The lack of decision-making power of ethnic minorities makes ethnic minorities insufficient in their community forestry management rights, and they are subject to excessive local policy constraints. For example, the Jiuzhaigou national park. In order to develop eco-tourism, the local government "reformed" the local forest. This is not in the interests of the local Tibetans and Qiangs, but they do not have the right to make decisions about "reconstruction" because it occurs in the state-owned forest. But considering that Jiuzhaigou is an area where Tibetans and Qiangs have lived for a long time, they should have the right to participate in the decision-making and management of local state-owned forests. Some ethnic minority communities have less social communication with the outside world, and therefore lack knowledge of the means of economic development. This leads to their relatively backward community economic level, which is very unfavorable for the development of local community forestry. Especially when the local government's management level is low and policies are heavy-handed, ethnic minorities may adopt agricultural development methods that exceed the environmental endurance in order to develop their economy. The possible loss of traditional culture in the future is also a very big problem. Ethnic diversity and cultural diversity are precious resources of China, and the culture of each nation is an important part of Chinese culture. In some cases of ethnic minority community forestry, traditional culture and traditional social structure are being destroyed. In addition, the arrival of foreign tourists may also cause adverse effects. Due to the uneven quality of tourists, some tourists will litter or cause damage to the ecology of community forestry. Nianbaoyuze is located at the junction of Sichuan and Gansu and is one of the sacred mountains of the Tibetans and Qiangs. In the last ten years, the local government has developed an eco-tourism industry to attract a large number of tourists. However, some scenic spots have been closed due to the bad impact of tourists on the ecological environment and the local community forests. This is a blow to the local economic development and the dissemination of ethnic minority culture.

Recommendations

The Tibetan villages in Aba Autonomous County have some homestays and specialty restaurants.

Based on the existing resources analysis, this review paper mainly provides the following suggestions on the development of community forestry in collaboration with ethnic minorities in western China.

• When developing community forestry for ethnic minorities, we must pay attention to local conditions and integrate the customs and culture of ethnic minorities. The government cannot rigidly apply a template to different regions and different ethnic minority communities. The cultural heritage of ethnic minorities, the protection of community forest resources, and economic development should be considered in many ways. At the same time, the local government should encourage ethnic minorities to participate in policy formulation and grant them sufficient community forest management rights. Taking into account some of the existing shortcomings, it is very important to improve the work level and knowledge reserves of grassroots government agencies. When the government takes the lead in the development of the industry, it should fully respect the local minority culture and customs and avoid causing damage to it.
• Reasonably develop ecological tourism and cultural tourism. In the process of development, the local government should pay attention to local conditions and avoid the same situation. In terms of capital investment, the local government should not only consider the introduction of foreign capital, but should consider the development of local ethnic industries. With the development of homestay culture, homestays with local ethnic characteristics have become options for tourist consumers. The government can encourage local residents to build homestays with ethnic characteristics through loans. Let foreign tourists participate in the daily life of ethnic minorities and deepen their understanding of the culture of ethnic minorities. In addition, hiring local minority tour guides is also a good way to promote employment. Ethnic minorities have a unique understanding of the local natural landscape, and different ethnic groups have their own legends and stories. Hiring local minority tour guides helps to develop a differentiated tourism industry. The development of ethnic handicrafts and the promotion of ethnic special diets are also good methods that are conducive to the cultural heritage and economic development of ethnic minorities. For example, the traditional Tibetan dzi, agate, turquoise and red coral ornaments have entered other place of China and many foreign countries.
• When developing eco-tourism, we should avoid changing or destroying the local ecology. The community forests of ethnic minorities are not only their survival resources, but also their spiritual beliefs. Many ethnic minorities have their own sacred mountains and trees. Educating tourists and enacting strict laws are important conditions for maintaining the sustainable development of eco-tourism. Visitors should be made aware of the importance of protecting community forests through preaching, and ethical means should be used to restrain tourists from uncivilized behaviors that may exist. At the same time, severe penalties should be imposed on tourists who damage the ecological environment. Both high fines and short-term detention should be covered by local laws and regulations. In addition, the government's own management level and construction level should also be improved. Try to ensure that the establishment of ecological reserves, national parks or other scenic spots will not overly affect the community forestry of local ethnic minorities.