In January 2004, NAFRI held a workshop in Luangprabang on shifting cultivation stabilisation and poverty eradication. Attended by more than 300 people, the workshop demonstrated that projects working in the uplands have gained a wealth of knowledge and experience. During the workshop, one working group explored ways in which these experiences and lessons could be shared and disseminated more widely.

A key recommendation of this group was then to develop a "sourcebook" focused on shifting cultivation stabilisation, poverty eradication and sustainable resource management. An English version was proposed since many experiences have been written up in English but not translated into Lao. By shortening articles and simplifying the language, it would be much easier to eventually translate into Lao and it might have a better chance to be read than long scientific papers.

The sourcebook is meant to be a compendium of best practices, lessons learned, and experiences gained by those working in the uplands. It is intended to provide field workers (provincial and district level staff ) with practical, easy to understand ways to solve problems facing upland development. The compilation can serve as a rich source of ideas and reference materials for trainers. It might also be useful to educators, policy makers, local officials and administrators. While the articles within the sourcebook can be further adapted to create community-based materials, the sourcebook as such is not meant for direct use with farmers or community groups.