Moving Mountains

The mountainous borderlands of socialist China, Vietnam, and Laos are home to some 70 million minority people of diverse ethnicities. In Moving Mountains, anthropologists, geographers, and political economists with first-hand experience in the region explore these peoples' survival strategies as they respond to unprecedented economic and political change. This unprecedented glimpse into a poorly understood region shows that development initiatives must be built on strong knowledge of local cultures in order to have lasting effect.