Who makes a living here? Northern Thailand

Overall trends associated with changing land use mixtures of mosaic patterns include:
1. Differences between altitude zone land use domains of ethnic groups are becoming less distinct.
2. Change appears to be associated with increased competition over land resources, ‘degradation’ or conversion of traditional systems, increased agricultural commercialization based on ‘lowland’ technologies, and larger areas cleared of forest at any one time.
3. Very little research and development has aimed at understanding traditional systems or the impacts of the transformations they are going through.

Major policy-related issues associated with changes in Mae Chaem include:
1) state and lowland perceived deterioration of the natural resource base
due to deforestation and intensifying agricultural production in upper
tributary watersheds, and its immediate and longer-term impacts on
resources used by downstream society
2) needs of poor mountain communities to have secure access to resources
and services that will allow them to improve their food security and
livelihoods
3) associated growing upstream-downstream tension and conflict