The Namche Conference: May 24-26, 2003 People, Park, and Mountain Ecotourism Participants and Presentations: Christina Chan

Christina Chan Ph.D. Student, Cornell University, Department of City and Regional Planning. Email: cc274@cornell.edu AbstractParticipation against power: Development among the Mewahang Rai and Kulung Rai of Makalu-Barun Conservation Area, Nepal This study employs ethnographic and historical analysis to compare the articulation and practice of participation and development by two clans in the Makalu-Barun Conservation Area of eastern Nepal. Previous research has attempted to predict people’s participation in development projects on the basis of socio-economic characteristics. Using PRA techniques, I conducted 47 household and four group interviews to assess local perceptions of what motivates people to participate. I argue that the relationship between the two clans, which existed prior to the influx of development organizations into the area, provides a better explanation of participation. State policies have de-legitimized the Mewahang in relation to the Kulung. Concomitantly, the Kulung are seizing development opportunities as a community unit to hedge against their greater risk of food insecurity. “Participation” is challenging local power structures. I conclude that the Mewahangs’ non-participation can be interpreted as an act of resistance to the development community, who perceive them as poor and backward, and the Kulungs’ participation can be interpreted as an act of resistance against the Mewahangs’ traditional position of dominance.

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