After the Flood. Mobility as an Adaptation Strategy in High Mountain Oases. The Case of Pasu in Gojal, Hunza Valley, Karakoram

The high mountain environment of the Hunza Valley in the Karakoram is characterised by significant potential energy, extended glaciation and related events that tend to threaten habitations and settlements. The village oasis of Pasu is taken as a case in point to highlight adaptation and coping strategies over a longer period. The village lands of Pasu have been shrinking over time owing to glacier outburst floods in the upper valleys. The inhabitants of Pasu have developed a set of coping strategies that are linked to mobility. Shifting populations to newly created irrigated oases in previously barren lands, out-migration to urban areas within the Karakoram and to metropolises in downcountry Pakistan in search of employment and education, international migration to overseas destinations, and the broadening of income generation by reducing the importance of agriculture in favour of services and tourism are measures of adaptation that are embedded into the sociopolitical and economic framework conditions. The shrinking village lands of Pasu have posed tremendous challenges to the mountain farmers, who have developed their own responses

Contested commons – multiple insecurities of pastoralists in North-Eastern Afghanistan

Pastoralists in North-Eastern Afghanistan are exposed to a multitude of contemporary challenges and threats while practising mobile animal husbandry in differing locations and within the spheres of varying power constellations. In this article a historical perspective is adopted to explore the challenges and multiple insecurities of Pashtun and Uzbek pastoral communities who seasonally engage in long-distance migration from the lowlands in Northern Afghanistan to the high pastures of Badakhshan. The same pasture area is regularly utilised by Shughni mountain farmers who practise combined mountain agriculture in the high mountain settlements close to Lake Shewa. Debates about nomadism's place in transforming societies, the drama of the commons, human security, and vulnerability issues frame the discussion of pastoralism in contested commons. Based on empirical evidence derived from open interviews with migrating pastoralists and sedentary groups on the Shewa plateau in Badakhshan, interpretations of pastoralism are presented, embedded in the context of contemporary Afghanistan. Pastoralism as a valuable survival and adaptive strategy is challenged by multiple environmental, social and political insecurities, by militancy and weak state authorities, and it unfolds in contested commons and along dangerous routes. The nexus of legal pluralism, tenure insecurity and changing control of space is identified as an important determining factor for the shape of mobile pastoralism in present-day Afghanistan

Oasenbewässerung im Karakorum. Autochtone Techniken und exogene Überprägung in der Hochgebirgslandwirtschaft Nordostpakistans

Irrigation in mountain oases of the Karakoram. Autochthonous techniques and exogenous transformation in the high altitude agriculture of Northern Pakistan Irrigation as a means of increasing the productivity on marginal lands forms an important concept of development planners in tropical and subtropical regions. Emphasis has been mainly put on lowlands as long as large-scale projects dominated development strategies. This case study focuses on the development of irrigation networks and the relation ship with social organisation in a mountainous region of the Karakoram, which in recent years has become the target of different development agencies. The ecological set-up requires regular irrigation for growing of field crops as the average precipitation on the valley floors never surpasses 150 mm per annum. In a diachronic analysis the expansion of the irrigation network has been elaborated and gives an insight into the socio-political impact of different historical phases. Shortage of foodstuffs, as well as limited water resources for irrigation, resulted in a sophisticated system of rules regulating the access to water and its distribution among clans and/or villages. External transformation of this system has mainly taken place since the deposition of the local rulers in 1972-1974 when a power vacuum occur red affecting the irrigation system as well. Development agencies support village organisations which nowadays are planning and executing irrigation projects for their own communities. Acknowledging local expertise and participa tion in the expansion of cultivated land promises a stabilisa tion ofexisting irrigation networks in the Karakoram

Transformation of high altitude livestock-keeping in China’s mountainous western periphery

High Asia has experienced a number of societal transformations in recent years that have significantly affected the livelihoods of pastoralists and combined mountain farmers. In the first place, changes have occurred in the management practices and the relationship between state institutions and pastoralists. A closer look reveals that significant transformations prevail in all locations concerned. In the context of the PR of China, cases from Tibet and Xinjiang are presented in order to highlight the effects of most recent resettlement schemes that follow a rationale of environmental protection and modernisation in order to stop degradation and to contribute to poverty alleviation among pastoralists. After collectivisation these are the most effective interventions in the pastoral sector and will significantly change animal husbandry and pastoral livelihoods in High Asia.La Haute-Asie a vécu de nombreuses transformations au sein de la société ces dernières années ; celles-ci ont eu des répercutions importantes sur les moyens de subsistance des habitants exerçant l’activité combinée de pasteurs et de fermiers des montagnes. Il y a eu tout d’abord des changements au niveau de l’organisation de la pratique ainsi que dans les relations entre les institutions officielles et les pasteurs des montagnes. En y regardant de plus près, on constate que des changements importants prédominent dans toutes les régions concernées. Dans le contexte de la République de Chine, des cas au Tibet et au Xinjiang ont été choisis afin d’illustrer les effets des plus récents projets de délocalisation, donnant ainsi une justification pour la protection de l’environnement et la modernisation devant servir à enfreindre à la dégradation et contribuer au soulagement de la pauvreté des pasteurs des montagnes. Après la collectivisation, il s’agit là des interventions les plus effectives au sein du secteur pastoral ; celles-ci vont transformer de manière signifiante l’élevage des animaux et les moyens de subsistance des pasteurs vivant en Haute-Asie

Wasser als Entwicklungsfaktor in semiariden montanen Siedlungsräumen

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Recent results from pastoralism research and development practice

In recent years a growing attention is given to pastoralism research and practice. Two reasons are mainly responsible : First, the growing awareness of the importance of rangelands and pastures in the framework of global and climatic change. Second, the different forms of external interventions in the pastoral realm that have significantly changed the degrees of freedom and have contributed to a shrinking space for pastoral communities.Ces dernières années, un intérêt croissant a été accordé aux pratiques pastorales et à la recherche sur ce domaine. Deux raisons peuvent être avancées : d’abord une prise de conscience de l’importance des prairies et des pâturages dans un contexte de changement global, en particulier climatique. Ensuite, les différentes formes d’interventions extérieures sur les communautés pastorales modifient considérablement leurs degrés de liberté et contribuent à réduire l’espace dont elles disposent