Comparative aspects of mountain land resources management and sustainability: case studies from India and Canada

India and Canada share a common heritage in natural resources management. B oth have a colonial background, settlers and indigenous peoples; there is a history of management agencies with utilitarian attitudes, and a history o f treating public lands as commodities for commerce rather than as resource s for local livelihoods. This historical context guided the overall goal of this study, which was policy development for the sustainable use of mounta in environments. Interviews, workshops and seminars were held with local pe ople and resource management professionals in a comparative case study in t wo regions; the Kullu area in Himachal Pradesh, India and the Arrow Lakes a rea in British Columbia, Canada. The paper is organized around two main obj ectives of the work relating to the successes and failures of mountain envi ronment resource management policies and the development of criteria for as sessing and monitoring sustainability in mountain environments, in particul ar, criteria for examining relevant cross-cultural dimensions of sustainabl e development in these environments. By way of conclusion the paper conside rs further ways in which traditional resource policy development and implem entation is being challenged by changing values and priorities; ecosystems management with people; and co-management and public participation.