Through their continued efforts, significant achievements have been made in halting rampant deforestation, unregulated tourism and illegal hunting of rare wildlife in the Qomolangma region.

The protected area, initially named Qomolangma Nature Preserve, was created on March 18, 1989, at the Tibet regional level.

Support from then-Governor of Tibet, Hu Jintao, was instrumental in shaping the community-based management design summarized below and also pushing through the landscape level size (in 1983, QNP was the largest nature reserve in Asia).

In 1993, the State Council of the People’s Republic of China elevated its protection to the national level and the QNP became QNNP.

As the primary external advisers for two decades, Daniel C. Taylor and Chun-Wuei Su Chien worked first through The Mountain Institute and then through Future Generations to provide management assistance in scientific, social development, historical renovation, ecotourism planning, and initiation of the Pendeba Program.