澜沧江-湄公河是一条集内河、界河、国际河流为一体的河流。云南境内澜沧江流域涉及云南西部 7个地州39个县市。复杂的地形地貌结构和多种气候带，形成植被垂直分布和地域分布的特点，呈现出多样性变化特征；域内94％为山区；占流域人口83％的民族（18个少数民族）大分散小聚居立体分布在山区，土地资源一直是他们赖以生存的最主要的生产生活资料，不同民族土地利用习俗，使流域内土地利用格局呈现出多元化特征。在这样一个边疆山区民族地区，寻求一条多元民族文化下土地资源合理利用和可持续发展战略，是加强民族团结，寻求均等发展机会脱贫致富，实现各民族共同繁荣和富裕的关键。
    采用遥感（RS）、地理信息系统（GIS）、全球卫星定位系统（GPS）高新技术，典型地区启用了快速农村评估（PRA，RapidRuralAppraise）方法，对流域1990年、1998年土地利用现状及空间结构演变进行了时空动态叠合研究、森林土地时空动态的整体演变研究以及变化动因分析，在此基础上，就多元民族文化下土地利用人地系统演变和流域发展的关联问题，提出一些看法，仅供商榷。

    Lancangjiang (Mekong) is characterized as an inland, boundary and international river. The Lancangjiang basin in Yunnan is located in the west of this province, including 7 prefectures and 39 counties or cities. Vegetation in this area is featured by vertical distribution and zonation, owning to the complicated terrain and physiognomy, and the variant climates in this area. Land cover is also much diversified. Ninety-five percent of this basin is mountainous area. Eighty-three percent of the people in this area are minority people (totally 18 minorities), stereoscopically scattering in the mountains. Hitherto, land is their main resource of subsistence and production. Different minority land use traditions have made a diversification in the land use pattern. Therefore, to pursue a developing strategy of sustainable and reasonable use of land resources in such a multi-cultural environment is the key to strengthening nationality unity, seeking equal opportunity of escaping from poverty and getting well-off, and achieving a common prosperity and richness of all nationalities.
    This study used remote sensing, geographic information system, global positioning system (3 S) and Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) in model areas to investigate the spatial-temporal dynamic superposition of the land use status and spatial structure evolvement in Xishuangbanna, the integral evolvement of the spatial-temporal dynamics of the forests and the land use changes in the basin between 1990 and 1998, as well as the driving forces behind the changes. Based on the study, we have brought forward some viewpoints on problems concerning land use, humanland system evolvement and the basin development in the background of multi-nationality culture.