Mountains: Yunnan Hani Tribe, China

Mountains provide a splendid backdrop from communities but they are also important ecological landscapes for the people that on and around them. Approximately one-tenth of the world's population depends directly on mountains for their life-support.In the mountainous province of Yunnan sit the world's most beautiful terraced rice fields. A terrace is a piece of sloped plane that has been cut into a series of successively receding flat surfaces or platforms, which resemble steps, for the purposes of more effective farming.