Miang Culture: The Community Resources Management Through "Design-Based Learning" for Self-Reliance of Highland Communities in the Upper Northern Thailand

The purpose of this article is to describe the formation of Miang resource management of the highland communities in the Upper Northern Thailand through design-based learning which is the mechanism to learning the management of the communities’ resource for self-reliance derived from the solid and strong foundation of the communities. The method utilized in the quality research, collecting the information from the documentary study, participatory and non-participatory observation, and the deep interview with the community philosopher, and the data is analyzed by using the content analysis method. The research found that most of the highland communities in the Upper Northern Thailand located at the west of Phi Pan Nam Mountains have a lifestyle that connects with the participatory Miang resource management, have wisdom which is the innovation of design-based learning for self-reliance of the communities through the accumulating and the transfer of the knowledge from generation to a generation called “Miang Culture” which is created from the systematic design-based learning process through the wisely utilization of Miang resource existing in the community, and to cause the maximum sustainability based on the participation of the community without causing the trouble or breaching other’s right.