Publication

This paper uses the case of Tibet to reflects on some of the paradoxical processes in rural labor transitions in the developing world. Tibetans are not very inclined to engage in low-wage employment even though they are among the poorest in China. Also, even though poor according to most measures, they are the wealthiest in rural China in terms of per capita assets. The author argues that these paradoxes can be understood through the concept of ‘subsistence capacity’, which allows people to remain independent of labor markets but is not sustainable in the long term.