Two years on… Still assisting the people of Yushu after the quake

As we move through 2012, and toward the third winter since the earthquake, the progress made in Yushu is in many respects significant (a whole town has been, or is being, rebuilt); yet in some other ways, progess also remains quite challenging especially for those who do not yet have new land/homes assigned or built…

Plateau Perspectives’ on-going, longer-term response to the earthquake has been in two main areas: (1) post-earthquake livelihood recovery, through development of Community Ecotourism; and (2) development of Rehabilitation Services in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in cooperation with the Disabilities Association.

Newsletter and annual reports, providing more detail about this work, can be downloaded from Plateau Perspectives’ website. Additional insights into our work can also be found in the “What We Do” section of Plateau Perspectives’ website; different sub-sections of our relaunched site also outline interventions in Income Generation, Community Ecotourism, Health & Rehabilitation, Disaster Relief, etc.

In support of the development of Community Ecotourism, a new site with a focus on community projects has been launched in the past year, QinghaiEcotourism.org. Financial support for this work comes in large part from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) by way of partner organizations in Norway, with additional support from Ford Foundation for the trial development of herders’ cooperatives and trust funds. Collaboration with nature reserve authorities also continues, as large areas of the prefecture are situated within ‘protected areas’ – and the development of a community co-management approach to conservation can help local communities better participate in conservation initiatives as well as achieve socio-economic development aspirations through community ecotourism and other means.

Our project to support the development of Rehabilitation Services in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture – begun in Longbao/Rongbo and also in Zhiduo/Dritoe – still needs further financial support.

Please consider supporting our work, in aid of the people of Yushu. Donated funds will be used to support the development of Rehabilitation Services in the Yushu area, or as requested (e.g., to support community development, or other affiliated programmes). Thank you for your generosity!