?Zoe Laughlin Wagener ENG 121 9/16/2014 The Modernization of Mt. Everest and the Effects on Sherpa Communities Tibet and Nepal sat isolated from the developing world for centuries. This isolation fueled the region’s exotic mystery, and prompted a wave of western explorers wanting to conquer its peaks. In 1953, the first expedition to summit Mount Everest was attempted by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. In 1996, when Jon Krakauer and his expedition group were in Sherpa country, he reflected in his book on the Sherpa life style and myths involving Sherpas: “Most of the people who live in this rugged country seem to have no desire to be severed from the modern world or the untidy flow of human progress”(Krakauer 48). The economics of Nepal and Tibet along with the well-being of the Sherpa communities rely on the Everest-based tourism. Due to the modernization of Everest, Sherpa communities have been greatly impacted by this newfound tourism. Cultural tourism and ecotourism surrounding Everest are emerging vehicles for many of the indigenous peoples to integrate into the global market economy. Many of the Sherpa societies surrounding Everest are affected by these nascent industries through the sherpa lifestyle (Spoon). Despite concerns about conflict, recent studies show “that Sherpas have been coping well with tourism and have used their new wealth to maintain many distinctive and valued aspects of their lifestyles and customs” (Fisher as cited from Stevens). Sherpa beliefs are place-based, which are principles that intellectually connect people to place in a specific environmental context, challenging the nature/ culture separation. For example, a spiritual value may be the belief of a deity that lives on a local mountain, like Everest, who affords protection over the people if certain behaviors are followed. The placed-based traditions induce more environmentally beneficial decisions without conservation being the overall concept (Spoon). Tourism also has conflicting social effects. Increased status and power brought to men from formerly poor or low-status households has been an important factor in village social and political dynamics for decades. The absence of men for long periods during the main tourist seasons has huge repercussions on families and community social life, as well as the deaths of many Sherpa men from mountaineering accidents (Furer-Haimendorf; Fisher; Stevens). From wealthy to