Project Document1

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Project Document1 United Nations Development Programme Country: Thailand PROJECT DOCUMENT1 Project Title: Conserving Habitats for Globally Important Flora and Fauna in Production Landscapes UNDP Strategic Plan: Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development Expected CP Outcome(s): Thailand is better prepared to coherently address climate change and environmental security issues through the enhancement of national capacity and policy readiness. Expected CP Output(s): (1) Enabling framework and capacity to manage Endangered Species (ES) in productive landscapes strengthened (2) Critical Habitat management demonstrated for three Endangered Species Implementing Partners: Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning (ONEP) Responsible Party: Zoological Park Organisation (ZPO) Brief Description The aim of the project is to mainstream the conservation of globally important and endangered biodiversity into the management of production landscapes through improved management of critical habitats. At the national level, it will develop a legislative, regulatory and enforcement framework to guide endangered species (ES) and critical habitat conservation and management. This will be supported by capacity building within key ministries and agencies to enhance cross sector coordination in critical habitat management, and to effectively monitor critical habitats and ES to better inform decision makers. These approaches will be piloted for three species namely the Eastern Sarus Crane (Grus antigone sharpii), the Spoon-billed Sandpiper (Eurynorhynchus pygmeus) and the Water Lily (Crinum thaianum) in three distinct geographical locations. Within each location the project will also build the capacity of local authorities, communities, private sector groups, and NGOs to develop environmentally friendly goods and services, which can provide a sound economic basis for ongoing critical habitat management and economic development. 1 For UNDP supported GEF funded projects as this includes GEF-specific requirements UNDP Thailand Environmental Unit Page 1 Programme Period: 4 years Total budget: USD 12,896,137 Atlas Award ID: 00083158 GEF: USD 1,758,904 Project ID: 00091787 Government: USD 10,997,233 PIMS # 4839 CSO: USD 100,000 Start date: 2015 UNDP: USD 40,000 End Date: 2018 Management Arrangements: NIM PAC Meeting Date 20 January 2015 Agreed by (Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning): Ms. Raweewan BHURIDEJ, Ph.D, Secretary-General Date/Month/Year Agreed by (UNDP): Mr. Luc STEVENS, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Date/Month/Year UNDP Thailand Environmental Unit Page 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................................................. 4 1 SITUATION ANALYSIS .................................................................................................................... 5 1.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 5 1.2 Thailand’s Biodiversity and its Global Significance .................................................................. 7 1.3 Threats and Root Causes ............................................................................................................ 9 1.4 Long-term Solution, Baseline Project and Barriers .................................................................. 17 1.5 Project Localities ...................................................................................................................... 22 1.6 Stakeholder Analysis ................................................................................................................ 28 2 STRATEGY ........................................................................................................................................ 32 2.1 Project Rationale and Policy Conformity ................................................................................. 32 2.2 Project Objective, Outcomes and Outputs/Activities ............................................................... 35 2.3 Assumptions and Risks ............................................................................................................ 46 2.4 Cost Effectiveness .................................................................................................................... 48 2.5 Stakeholder Involvement .......................................................................................................... 49 2.6 Expected Global, National and Local Benefits ........................................................................ 53 2.7 Project Consistency with National Priorities/Strategies ........................................................... 54 2.8 Sustainability and Replicability ............................................................................................... 57 3 PROJECT RESULTS FRAMEWORK ........................................................................................... 59 4 TOTAL BUDGET AND WORKPLAN ........................................................................................... 63 5 MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS ............................................................................................ 69 5.1 At Central Level ....................................................................................................................... 71 5.2 At Local Level .......................................................................................................................... 72 6 MONITORING FRAMEWORK AND EVALUATION ................................................................ 72 6.1 The Inception Phase ................................................................................................................. 72 6.2 Monitoring and Reporting Responsibilities and Events ........................................................... 73 6.3 Independent Evaluations and Audits ........................................................................................ 74 6.4 M&E Workplan and Budget .................................................................................................... 75 7 LEGAL CONTEXT ........................................................................................................................... 75 8 AUDIT CLAUSE ................................................................................................................................ 76 ANNEXES ................................................................................................................................................. 77 Annex 1: ToR of Key Personnel ........................................................................................................ 77 Annex 2: Capacity Scorecard Assessment ......................................................................................... 81 Annex 3: GEF Tracking Tool ............................................................................................................. 90 Annex 4: Environmental and Social Review Criteria ....................................................................... 91 Annex 5: Co-financing Letters ......................................................................................................... 101 UNDP Thailand Environmental Unit Page 3 ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS BCST Bird Conservation Society of Thailand BEDO Biodiversity Based Economy Development Office DMCR Department of Marine and Coastal Resources DNP Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation DTCP Department of Town and Country Planning EIA Environmental Impact Assessments ES Endangered Species ESC Eastern Sarus Crane IEE Initial Environmental Enquiry IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature KKCC Khok Kham Conservation Club KPI Key Performance Indicators LDD Land Development Department MFF Mangroves for the Future MoAC Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives MoI Ministry of Interior MoInd Ministry of Industry MONRE Ministry of Natural Resource and the Environment MOTS Ministry of Tourism and Sport N-ACT North Andaman Community Tourism Network NEB National Environment Board NEF National Environment Fund NEQA National Environmental Quality Act ONEP Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning PA Protected Areas PAO Provincial Administrative Organization PIO Provincial Irrigation Office PONRE Provincial Office of Natural Resources and the Environment RFD Royal Forestry Department RID Royal Irrigation Department SBS Spoon-billed Sandpiper SEIA Strategic Environmental Impact Assessments TAO Tambon Administrative Office ZPO Zoological Parks Organisation UNDP Thailand Environmental Unit Page 4 1 SITUATION ANALYSIS 1.1 Introduction Overall socio-economic context Thailand's geographical location is the meeting point of several major forest complexes and watersheds, with a number of major rivers, which stream down to the Gulf of Thailand. The country has a long history of being a trading hub, with excellent agricultural land, fisheries and forest resources. The country began a period of rapid development during the 1960s with increases in agricultural production driven by an expansion of land under cultivation as well as investments in infrastructure to facilitate access to markets2. The 1st national development plan in 1960 was focused on rapid infrastructure development, industrialization and mono cropping for export. As the country continued to industrialize growth in the agriculture sector
Recommended publications
  • Military Brotherhood Between Thailand and Myanmar: from Ruling to Governing the Borderlands
    1 Military Brotherhood between Thailand and Myanmar: From Ruling to Governing the Borderlands Naruemon Thabchumphon, Carl Middleton, Zaw Aung, Surada Chundasutathanakul, and Fransiskus Adrian Tarmedi1, 2 Paper presented at the 4th Conference of the Asian Borderlands Research Network conference “Activated Borders: Re-openings, Ruptures and Relationships”, 8-10 December 2014 Southeast Asia Research Centre, City University of Hong Kong 1. Introduction Signaling a new phase of cooperation between Thailand and Myanmar, on 9 October 2014, Thailand’s new Prime Minister, General Prayuth Chan-o-cha took a two-day trip to Myanmar where he met with high-ranked officials in the capital Nay Pi Taw, including President Thein Sein. That this was Prime Minister Prayuth’s first overseas visit since becoming Prime Minister underscored the significance of Thailand’s relationship with Myanmar. During their meeting, Prime Minister Prayuth and President Thein Sein agreed to better regulate border areas and deepen their cooperation on border related issues, including on illicit drugs, formal and illegal migrant labor, including how to more efficiently regulate labor and make Myanmar migrant registration processes more efficient in Thailand, human trafficking, and plans to develop economic zones along border areas – for example, in Mae 3 Sot district of Tak province - to boost trade, investment and create jobs in the areas . With a stated goal of facilitating border trade, 3 pairs of adjacent provinces were named as “sister provinces” under Memorandums of Understanding between Myanmar and Thailand signed by the respective Provincial governors during the trip.4 Sharing more than 2000 kilometer of border, both leaders reportedly understood these issues as “partnership matters for security and development” (Bangkok Post, 2014).
    [Show full text]
  • Thailand R I R Lmplemen'rationof Aaicl¢6 of Theconvcntio Lon Biologicaldiversity
    r_ BiodiversityConservation in Thailand r i r lmplemen'rationof Aaicl¢6 of theConvcntio_lon BiologicalDiversity Muw_ny of _e_cl reCUr _ eNW_WM#_ I Chapter 1 Biodiversity and Status 1 Species Diversity 1 Genetic Diversity 10 [cosystem Diversity 13 Chapter 2 Activities Prior to the Enactment of the National Strategy on Blodiversity 22 Chapter 3 National Strategy for Implementing the Convention on Biological Diversity 26 Chapter 4 Coordinating Mechanisms for the Implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity $5 Chapter 5 International Cooperation and Collaboration 61 Chapter 6 Capacity for an Implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity 70 Annex I National Policies, Measures and Plans on the Conservation and Sustainable Utilization of Biodiversity 1998-2002 80 Annex H Drafted Regulation on the Accress and Transfer of Biological Resources 109 Annex IH Guideline on Biodiversity Data Management (BDM) 114 Annex IV Biodiversity Data Management Action Plan 130 Literature 140 ii Biodiversity Conservation in Thailand: A National Report Preface Regular review of state of biodiversity and its conservation has been recognized by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) as a crucial element in combatting loss of biodiversity. Under Article 6, the Convention's Contracting Parties are obligated to report on implementation of provisions of the Convention including measures formulated and enforced. These reports serve as valuable basic information for operation of the Convention as well as for enhancing cooperation and assistance of the Contracting Parties in achieving conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. Although Thailand has not yet ratified the Convention, the country has effectively used its provisions as guiding principles for biodiversity conservation and management since the signing of the Convention in 1992.
    [Show full text]
  • Assessment of Greater Mekong Subregion Economic Corridors
    About the Assessment of Greater Mekong Subregion Economic Corridors The transformation of transport corridors into economic corridors has been at the center of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Economic Cooperation Program since 1998. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) conducted this Assessment to guide future investments and provide benchmarks for improving the GMS economic corridors. This Assessment reviews the state of the GMS economic corridors, focusing on transport infrastructure, particularly road transport, cross-border transport and trade, and economic potential. This assessment consists of six country reports and an integrative report initially presented in June 2018 at the GMS Subregional Transport Forum. About the Greater Mekong Subregion Economic Cooperation Program The GMS consists of Cambodia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Myanmar, the People’s Republic of China (specifically Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region), Thailand, and Viet Nam. In 1992, with assistance from the Asian Development Bank and building on their shared histories and cultures, the six countries of the GMS launched the GMS Program, a program of subregional economic cooperation. The program’s nine priority sectors are agriculture, energy, environment, human resource development, investment, telecommunications, tourism, transport infrastructure, and transport and trade facilitation. About the Asian Development Bank ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining
    [Show full text]
  • Wkhnr12-Vtmas7peapfbx4wp9ag760.Pdf
    X ' BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME FROM THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND THE GIFT OF Henrg M, Sage 189X kj<^^^ in/.A eornell University Library QL 691.14011 V.3 Birds. 3 1924 000 100 341 Cornell University Library The original of tiiis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924000100341 THE FAUNA OF BRITISH INDIA, iNCLUDura CEYLON AND BURMA. PVSZISSED UNSIilt TSE AUTSOSITT OF THE SeCBETASY OF State fob India in Council. bdiieb bt w. t. blantobd. BIRDS-Vol. III. BT W. T. BLANFORD, F.R.S. LONDON: TAYLOR AND FRANCIS, RED LION COURT, FLEET STREET. OAIiCUTTA: I BOMBAY: THACKBR, BPIlfK, b CO. | THACKBE & CO., LIMITED. BERLIN: B, FBLEDLAITDEB & BQHN, 11 CAELBTBABSE. 1895. PEINTBD BY TATLOE AND FRANCIS, BUD LION OOUET, FLEET STREET, PEEEACE. In the Preface to the second volume, a change in the original plan of the ' Birds ' was announced. It was sti^ proposed to complete the work in three volumes, but as the second was shorter than usual it was announced that the deficiency would be made good in the third, which would contain descriptions of all Indian birds except Passeres. As the work progressed, however, further modification became necessary, as it was evident that the proposed third volume would be "of inconvenient size, and it has now been decided to divide it into two. The birds will therefore occupy four volumes instead of three, and of these the third is herewith published. The fourth volume is in preparation and a considerable portion is written.
    [Show full text]
  • Clouded Leopard and Small Felid Conservation Summit Final Report 
    Clouded Leopard and Small Felid Conservation Summit Final Report Coverphotoscourtesyof:TheCloudedLeopardProject,AndrewHearn,KarenPovey,JoannaRoss andAlexSilwa. SpeciesrangemapscompiledwithassistancefromMarkusJenny. Sponsored by: The Aspinall Foundation, Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, Clouded Leopard Project, Kasetsart University, Nashville Zoo, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park, Thailand Department of National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, The Zoological Park Organization AcontributionoftheIUCN/SSCConservationBreedingSpecialistGroup. ©Copyright2009CBSG IUCN encourages meetings, workshops and other fora for the consideration and analysis of issues related to conservation, and believes that reports of these meetings are most useful when broadly disseminated. The opinions and views expressed by the authors may not necessarily reflect the formal policies of IUCN, its Commissions, its Secretariat or its members. The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Povey,K,J.G.Howard,Sunarto,D.Priatna,D.Ngoprasert,D.Reed,A.Wilting,A.Lynam,I.Haidai,B. Long,A.Johnson,S.Cheyne,C.Breitenmoser,K.Holzer,andO.Byers(eds.).CBSG.2009.Clouded LeopardandSmallFelidConservationSummitFinalReport.IUCN/SSCConservationBreeding SpecialistGroup:AppleValley,MN.
    [Show full text]
  • Malay Minorities in the Tenasserim Coast
    ASEAN Journal of Community Engagement Volume 4 Number 1 July Article 12 7-31-2020 Malay minorities in The Tenasserim coast Ma Tin Cho Mar Department of South East Asian Studies, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, [email protected] Pham Huong Trang International School, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarhub.ui.ac.id/ajce Part of the Polynesian Studies Commons Recommended Citation Mar, Ma Tin Cho and Trang, Pham Huong (2020). Malay minorities in The Tenasserim coast. ASEAN Journal of Community Engagement, 4(1). Available at: https://doi.org/10.7454/ajce.v4i1.1069 Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 License. This Review Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Universitas Indonesia at ASEAN Journal of Community Engagement. It has been accepted for inclusion in ASEAN Journal of Community Engagement. Ma Tin Cho Mar, Pham Huong Trang | ASEAN Journal of Community Engagement | Volume 4, Number 1, 2020 Malay minorities in The Tenasserim coast Ma Tin Cho Mara*, Pham Huong Trangb aDepartment of South East Asian Studies, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia bInternational School, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam Received: December 29th, 2019 || Revised: January 30th, 2020 || Accepted: July 29th, 2020 Abstract This paper discusses the Malay Minorities of the Malay Minorities in the Tenasserim Coast. And Tanintharyi Division is an administrative region of Myanmar at present. When we look closely at some of the interesting historical facts, we see that this region is “Tanao Si” in Thai, or Tanah Sari in Malay.
    [Show full text]
  • BASELINE STUDY 4, MYANMAR: Overview of Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade
    BASELINE STUDY 4, MYANMAR: Overview of Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade August 2011 Regional Support Programme for the EU FLEGT Action Plan in Asia Background The European Commission (EC) published a Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan in 2003. FLEGT aims not simply to reduce illegal deforestation, but in promoting good forest governance, aims to contribute to poverty eradication and sustainable management of natural resources. The European Forest Institute (EFI), an international research organisation with its headquarters in Finland, conducts, advocates and facilitates forest research networking at the pan-European level. Under its Policy & Governance programme, the EFI assists in the EU’s implementation of the FLEGT Action Plan. In 2007, the EU FLEGT Facility was established, hosted and managed by the EFI. The Facility (i) supports the bilateral process between the EU and tropical producing countries towards signing and implementing “Voluntary Partnership Agreements” (VPAs) under the FLEGT Action Plan, and (ii) executes the regional support programme for the EU FLEGT Action Plan in Asia. The FLEGT Asia Regional Office (FLEGT Asia) of the EFI’s EU FLEGT Facility was formally established in October 2009. FLEGT Asia seeks to collaborate and build synergies with existing regional initiatives and partners in Asia. The EU FLEGT Facility is managed and implemented by the EFI in close collaboration with the EU. Goal of FLEGT Asia The goal of the FLEGT Asia Regional Programme is the promotion of good forest governance, contributing to poverty eradication and sustainable management of natural resources in Asia, through direct support of the implementation of the EU’s FLEGT Action Plan.
    [Show full text]
  • Climate Impacts of the Biomass Burning in Indochina on Atmospheric Conditions Over Southern China
    Aerosol and Air Quality Research, 19: 2707–2720, 2019 Copyright © Taiwan Association for Aerosol Research ISSN: 1680-8584 print / 2071-1409 online doi: 10.4209/aaqr.2019.01.0028 Climate Impacts of the Biomass Burning in Indochina on Atmospheric Conditions over Southern China Lina Huang1, Wenshi Lin1,2*, Fangzhou Li3, Yuan Wang4, Baolin Jiang3 1 School of Atmospheric Sciences and Guangdong Province Key Laboratory for Climate Change and Natural Disaster Studies, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510275, China 2 Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), Zhuhai 519082, China 3 School of Atmospheric Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 519082, China 4 Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91106, USA ABSTRACT Substantial biomass burning (BB) activities in Indochina during March and April of each year generate aerosols that are transported via westerly winds to southern China. These BB aerosols have both radiative (direct and semi-direct) and indirect effects on the climate. This study evaluates impacts of BB in Indochina during April 2013 on atmospheric conditions in southern China using WRF-Chem sensitivity simulations. We show that the atmosphere becomes drier and hotter under the aerosol radiative effect in southern China, while the changes linked to the indirect effect are opposite. The former (the latter) rises (reduces) surface temperature 0.13°C (0.19°C) and decrease (increase) water vapor mixing ratios 0.23 g kg–1 (0.40 g kg–1) at 700 hPa. Atmospheric responses to aerosols in turn affect aerosol dissipation. Specifically, BB aerosols absorb solar radiation and heat the local atmosphere, which inhibits the formation of clouds (reducing low-level cloud about 7%) related to the aerosol semi-direct effect.
    [Show full text]
  • Monocot Type Specimens
    MONOCOT TYPE Barcode Family Genus Species Country State Locality Date of Collector Coll. no. collection CAL0000000456 Orchidaceae Saccolabium crassilabre India Meghalaya Khasia Hill 00.07.1897 Dr. King's Collector 628 CAL0000000457 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus trichoglottis Singapore Tauglu 00.00.1891 H. N. Redley CAL0000000458 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus trichoglottis Singapore 21.07.1889 H. N. Redley CAL0000000459 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus trichoglottis Malaysia Perak 00.03.1885 B. Scortechini 1830 CAL0000000460 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus trichoglottis Malaysia Perak Open Ground, Larut 00.03.1884 Dr. King's Collector 5934 CAL0000000461 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus trichoglottis Malaysia Perak Open Ground, Larut 00.03.1884 H. Kunstler 5934 CAL0000000462 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus pulchellus SriLanka Ceylon Thwaites CP 2354 CAL0000000463 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus complanatus SriLanka Ceylon Thwaites CP 3209 CAL0000000464 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus recurvus Malaysia Perak Limbo Hills, Larut 00.05.1884 Dr. King's Collector 6040 CAL0000000465 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus recurvus Malaysia Perak Limbo Hills, Larut 00.05.1884 H. Kunstler 6040 CAL0000000466 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus pauciflorus Malaysia Perak Revd. Father Scortechini 534a CAL0000000467 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus scortechinii Malaysia Perak Revd. Father Scortechini 440 CAL0000000468 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus filiformis Malaysia Perak Larut 00.04.1884 H. Kunstler 5930 CAL0000000469 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus filiformis Malaysia Perak Larut 00.04.1884 Dr. King's Collector 5930 CAL0000000470 Orchidaceae Sarcochilus filiformis
    [Show full text]
  • Phuket Province
    1 Phuket Province Provincial Emblem Flag Province . Governor: Narong Phonla-iat (since Government October 2016) Capital: Phuket City Royal capital: - Population: 386,605 (2014) Area: 576 km2 Administrative divisions Phuket is divided into three districts (amphoe), which are further subdivided into 17 sub-districts (tambon), and 103 villages (muban).Mueang Surat Thani 1. Mueang Phuket 2. Kathu 3. Thalang There are nine municipal (thesaban) areas within the province. The capital Phuket has city (thesaban nakhon) status. Patong and Kathu have town (thesaban mueang) status. There are further six sub-district municipalities (thesaban tambon): Karon, Thep Krasattri, Choeng 2 Thale, Ratsada, Rawai, and Wichit. The non-municipal areas are administered by nine tambon administrative organizations (TAO). Geography Phuket is the largest island in Thailand. It is in the Andaman Sea in southern Thailand. The island is mostly mountainous with a mountain range in the west of the island from the north to the south. The mountains of Phuket form the southern end of the Phuket mountain range, which ranges for 440 kilometres (270 mi) from the Kra Isthmus. Although some recent geographical works refer to the sections of the Tenasserim Hills in the isthmus as the "Phuket Range", these names are not found in classical geographic sources. In addition, the name Phuket is relatively recent having previously been named Jung Ceylon and Thalang. The highest elevation of the island is usually regarded as Khao Mai Thao Sip Song (Twelve Canes), at 529 metres (1,736 ft) above sea level. However it has been reported by barometric pressure readings that there is an even higher elevation (with no apparent name), of 542 meters above sea level, in the Kamala hills behind Kathu waterfall.
    [Show full text]
  • Safe Haven: Mon Refugees at the Capitals of Siam from the 1500S to the 1800S
    151 Safe Haven: Mon Refugees at the Capitals of Siam from the 1500s to the 1800s Edward Van Roy From the 16th to the early 19th centuries Siam received a series of migrations of Mon refugees fleeing Burmese oppression, as well as sporadic inflows of Mon war captives. Large numbers of those arrivals were settled along the Chaophraya River and at the successive capitals of Ayutthaya, Thonburi, and Bangkok. This article examines the patterns of Mon settlement at the successive capitals and the patronage system whereby the Mon were granted privileged status and residence in return for military services. It considers the Old-Mon–New-Mon tensions that were generated by the series of migrations, including those that marked the transition to the Bangkok era. In closing, it refers to the waning of Mon ethnic identity and influence within Bangkok over the course of the 19th century. That analysis of the Mon role provides fresh insight into the evolving social organization and spatial structure of the three consecutive Siamese capitals. Old Mon and New Over the course of the past millennium and more, a succession of Mon migrations crossed the Tenasserim Hills to settle in the Chaophraya watershed. Each new migration encountered earlier groups of Mon settlers. In many cases the encounter entailed tensions between the old and the new settler groups, and in each case the newly settled groups, or “New Mon,” became established communi- ties or “Old Mon” who were to face yet newer Mon immigrants. The distinction between Old and New Mon thus historically presented a “moving target” in the history of Mon migration into the Chaophraya watershed and their interaction with Thai civilization.
    [Show full text]
  • TAKE the WORLD by TRAIN Experience Vast Continents, Stunning Mountain Vistas and Cultural Diversity Through Train Travel
    November 2016 TAKE THE WORLD BY TRAIN Experience vast continents, stunning mountain vistas and cultural diversity through train travel. ICELAND: NATURAL WONDERS • DICKENS OF A HOLIDAY • CEDAR KEY TAKE THE WORLD BY TRAIN Experience vast continents, stunning mountain vistas and cultural diversity through train travel. Here are some of the world’s finest journeys. Coastal Passage route on Rocky Mountaineer By Deborah R. Huso MOUNTAINEER ROCKY OF COURTESY ROCKY MOUNTAINEER: VANCOUVER TO BANFF Rocky Mountaineer’s First Passage to the West journey has been rated consistently among the best train trips in the world, and there is good reason for that status. It’s arguably the easiest way to experience the Canadian Rockies in style. From Vancouver, Rocky Mountaineer crosses the varied landscape of British Columbia, passing through the Coast and Cascade Mountains and Fraser Canyon. One of the highlights of the trip involves the train’s journey into the Canadian Rockies of Alberta, climbing over Rogers Pass and winding through the Spiral Tunnels. Passengers spend two nights in Banff and can tour the area’s natural wonders, including the Hoodoos, which are otherworldly limestone pinnacles rising above the Bow River. Travelers can then enjoy overnight at The Fairmont Chateau at Lake Louise. This is possibly one of the most stunning settings in the world, with the fairytale hotel overlooking the bright blue glacial waters of Lake Louise, which form a mirror for the surrounding snow-streaked peaks. While here, travelers have the freedom to hike, canoe on the lake, or enjoy the amenities of The Fairmont, which include an indoor heated pool and nearly two dozen hotel shops selling everything from handmade chocolates to Native American art.
    [Show full text]