Acculturation of rural households participating in a clean development mechanism forest carbon sequestration program: A survey of Yi ethnic areas in Liangshan, China

We present results from a survey of rural households of the Yi people that participated in the clean development mechanism forest carbon sequestration project in Liangshan, Sichuan, China. We analyze rural households' acculturation strategies and the corresponding influencing factors of local traditional culture and modern commercial culture with forestation and a reforestation carbon sequestration project based on two dimensions and four strategies, viz., integration, assimilation, separation, and marginalization. Results indicate that rural households that took part in the forest carbon sequestration project had a higher identification with local traditional culture than with modern commercial culture. Integration and separation were two primary adaptation strategies toward traditional culture and modern commercial culture. Gender, age, education level, and land area involved in the project were significant determinants for rural households' cultural adaptation strategies.