Mongolia’s Pastoral Nomadism in Transition: Putting Case Studies on Socioecological Feedbacks and Socioeconomic Forcing into a Conceptual Framework

Pastoral nomadism is on the retreat globally and is being displaced by sedentary land use systems. We analysed the socioeconomics and socioecological feedbacks of mobile livestock-keeping at two sites in the forest-steppe of western Mongolia. Our study areas differed in the herders’ responses to recent changes in the socioeconomic conditions and in climate. One difference was in the spatiotemporal exploitation of the available pastureland with seasonal movements. In one region, most pastoralists have reduced or even stopped seasonal movements. This made the pastoral social-ecological systems (SES) less resilient to climate warming. A key factor fostering the herders’ mobility and market opportunities was the ownership of trucks.