Photojournalist Taylor Weidman, based out of Mongolia, is founder of the Vanishing Cultures Project. The project is, "...dedicated to documenting endangered cultures, advocating for locally-run preservation projects and helping to fund these projects through donations, book sales and print sales," Weidman says. As part of the project, Weidman and a writer spend four to six months a year with an indigenous group facing rapid cultural change. They create a book documenting the traditions and lifestyles of the communty to, "serve as an enduring record." Last year they spent time in Nepal. "Hidden in the rain shadow of the Himalaya in one of the most remote corners of Nepal lies Mustang, or the former Kingdom of Lo. Hemmed in by the world's highest mountain range to the south and an occupied and shuttered Tibet to the north, this tiny Tibetan kingdom has remained virtually unchanged since the 15th century. Today, Mustang is arguably the best-preserved example of traditional Tibetan life left in the world. But today, Mustang is poised for change. A new highway will connect the region to Kathmandu and China for the first time, ushering in a new age of modernity and altering Mustang's desert-mountain villages forever.
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