Since the beginning of pastoralism on the Tibetan Plateau, nomads existence has depended on spinning and weaving skills. Sheep and yak wool is spun and woven into clothing, blankets, bags, and tents. Yak and goat hair is fashioned into ropes. These techniques and skills, developed millennia ago, are still widely practiced today. Tibetan nomad women near Qinghai Lake, Qinghai Province.
Women play a very important role in nomadic pastoral societies on the Tibetan Plateau.
Women make important decisions about the use of rangelands and the management of livestock and are responsible for many of the livestock production activities. Their decisions and actions have effects on rangeland resources and livestock. Pastoral development programmes need to focus more efforts on nomad women. Tibetan nomad near Damxung, Tibet. Nomads possess considerable indigenous knowledge about the environment in which they live and upon which their lives depend.