International workshop on dynamics of land-use/land-cover change in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya: A summary

On April 20-25, 1997, forty researchers representing a broad range of disciplines met in Kathmandu to discuss the nature and consequences of land-use/land-cover changes (LUCC) in Hindu Kush-Himalaya (HKH). The overall objective of the International Workshop on Dynamics of Land-Use/Land-Cover Change in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya was to provide a forum where researchers from Asia and around the world could synthesize current knowledge and plan further interdisciplinary investigations into the nature and consequences of land-use/land-cover changes in HKH. One goal of the Workshop was to define a regional implementation strategy appropriate for the HKH region that addressed the overarching objectives of the LUCC Core Project. Like other regional initiatives, the HKH effort is aimed at two broad objectives. First, by enhancing our understanding of how LUCC dynamics in the HKH compare and contrast with other regions, we progress towards the more general goal of improving "global" understanding through improved coupling and nesting of regional LUCC models. Second, a strong motivation of the assembled researchers was to improve regional understanding for "land use/cover change in its own right" or the meaning of this change in general for environmental and social well being. The Workshop represented a context in which the global change and environment-development research communities worked towards a common research agenda driven by common needs.