Combining Ecological and Social Studies in the Comparative Study of Pastoralism in Inner Asia

This paper describes the research underway at the Cambridge University MacArthur ECCIA project, which involves both social and environmental research in the comparative study of the Inner Asian steppe and its peoples. It summarises the research strategy, and goes on to mention some of the points that are emerging from the project at this stage. The paper compares the numbers of livestock supported by the pastoral economies of Inner Asiabefore and after collectivisation, and contrasts the pastoral sectors of Buryat and Chita with the more mobile pastoral systems of Mongolia and Tuva, which appear more sustainable. It notes that the case-studies carried out by the project in Buryatia and Chita suggest that the conditions for the emergence of a sustainable market economy are largely lacking, and that so far attempts to introduce one have been unsuccessful. It questions the wisdom of continued top-down planning in an attempt to apply inappropriate western economic models, and suggests locally-developed plans for pragmatic agricultural development, learning from the experiences of neighbouring regions of Inner Asia.