China's Qinghai Lake (3200 m altitude, 4400 m² ) on the northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau is an outstanding, world-class site for obtaining high-resolution records of Quaternary climate and environmental history. This saline lake contains a sedimentary record that likely extends back at least into the Pliocene. A study of drill cores from the lake and the surrounding area are critical for understanding the climatic, ecological and tectonic evolution of this area, including the development of the East Asian monsoon system and its relationship to major global atmospheric circulation and the uplift history of the Tibetan Plateau. 

Keywords: Asia, China, Tibetan Plateau, Lake Qinghai, CESD, Climate Change, Eastern Asian Monsoon, Global Change, Lake Drilling, Paleoclimatology