Overview

Located between the Jinsha, a major branch of the Yangtze, and the Mekong Rivers in northwest Yunnan Province, the region of Shangri-La (known as “Shangbala” to locals) is at the heart of one of the world’s richest regions in terms of biodiversity. Surrounded by snow-capped mountains, alpine meadows and montane forests, the area is home to endangered species such as the snub-nosed monkey and snow leopard. This ecological paradise is now under threat from the region’s rapid economic expansion over the last two decades. Paradoxically, the local communities who rely on the region’s natural resources for their survival see little of the economic benefits of this expansion and remain some of the poorest in the country.

Shangri-La’s unique cultural diversity is also at risk. Local ethnic Tibetan communities scattered throughout the region face increasing pressure from external forces such as rapid economic expansion, urbanization and mass-tourism. As a result, local traditions are being lost and forgotten, which affect both ecological and cultural heritage.

To address this situation, WWF China’s Shangri-La Initiative is using education as a means to empower Shangri-La’s local communities to manage their resources in a sustainable manner. This goal will be achieved by:

• Facilitating a learning process through community action research projects to foster knowledge, skills, and attitudes of communities to sustainably manage their local natural resources, traditional culture and social infrastructure
• Increasing the capacity and potential of people and communities in the Shangri-La region through the establishment of the Shangri-La Institute for Sustainable Development. The institute will shape and initiate change towards a sustainable future by connecting local actors to tertiary and vocational education programmes

WWF China’s Education Programme has been supporting community-initiated activities in the Shangri-La region since 1996, building trust with partners including village communities, Nature Reserves, monasteries, a local NGO and local authorities. Some of these projects’ achievements include:

• Four Community Learning Centres have been established in the rural communities in the region of Shangri-La. These Centres provide a physical & institutional empowerment for the communities to lead the learning process through projects and community initiatives. Recent initiatives organized by the Centres have included, tree planting, biogas installation, veterinary training, ecotourism training and Tibetan Language courses.
• Supporting the development of the Baimaxueshan Tibetan Community School through a partnership with local communities and government agencies.
• A living Buddha was invited to provide education on 'natural protection and Buddhism' to the villagers in and around the reserve. A range of materials on 'nature resource conservation and Buddhism' and 'nature and Buddhism' have also been compiled, and distributed to local villagers in and around the nature reserve. One such book - An Ecological View of Tibetan Buddhism - has been highly praised and is now a resource used by Tibet University.

Shangri-La Institute for Sustainable Development

The project will continue to expand its community outreach and capacity building work, both in breadth and scope. A fundamental component of this outreach will be the establishment of the Shangri-La Institute for Sustainable Development. The Institute will theorise, institutionalise, and mainstream ESD practices on a local community level and act as a stepping-stone to bring community engagement in sustainable development to a national level. Special attention will be paid to the areas of local governance, Local Agenda 21 and the citizenship of education. The Institute itself is split into the following four components:

Shangri-La College – Based in Shangri-La, the College will research and disseminate ESD learning to local communities through its courses in Natural Resource Management, Ecotourism, Tibetan Studies and Rural Area Development. The College has the backing of the local government, who have already committed more than 12 million USD to infrastructure and maintenance costs. Baimaxueshan and Bazhu community schools will also be linked to the College.
• Institute for Sustainable Development at Tibet University - The Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD) will be heavily involved in both the community based sustainable development projects and the establishment of the Shangri-la College, especially in the development of the College curriculum in Tibetan Studies. Based on its rich knowledge in Tibetan Studies and experience in applying that knowledge in developing sustainable community initiatives in Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), ISD will work with the local communities and educators in incorporating local culture, indigenous knowledge into the training of future educators in Shangri-La.
• WWF Conservation Training courses - The Shangri-La Institute will also serve as a training base for conservation and sustainable development. Training courses will be organized for local, national and international partners throughout the year. Areas of learning will include a whole range of subjects including nature conservation, social development as well as practical skills in project management. Conservationists from WWF network and other national and international professionals will be invited to conduct training and run workshops.
• Expanding the scope - The Initiative intends to institutionalise and mainstream the concepts, principles and approaches of community education for sustainable development across China and beyond. To achieve this purpose, both the community projects and the three components of the Shangri-La Institute, namely Shangri-La College, Institute for Sustainable Development at TU and the WWF Conservation Institute, will be closely linked with WWF China’s nationwide formal sector education for sustainable development programme, the Environmental Educators’ Initiative (EEI). The 21 EE/ESD Centres established by EEI will be the catalyst in promoting community education for sustainable development in their own regions and provinces.

As a result of social changes in the community since the Shangri-la project began, relationships between the various local partners have steadily grown stronger and stronger, resulting in some important conservation achievements:

• Preventing flooding downstream through forest preservation
• Protecting habitats for Yunnan snub-nosed monkey and other endangered wildlife species
• Slowing down the decline in biodiversity
• Empowering the local communities to address the outside world with conservation issues

Most importantly, the communities are learning to find, analyse and decide on the best course of action for the stewardship of their environment. In effect, learning above all to help themselves and future generations.

Donor

WWF-UK

For further information:

Liu Yunhua, Education Programme Director, WWF China Programme. Tel 6522-7100. Email: yhliu@wwfchina.org


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