"Life is Chaos Now" : Water, Modernity and Changing Landscapes in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam

Sammanfattning: This study details the effects of climate change and market fluctuations on the rural district of Cu Lao Dung located in the Mekong Delta of southern Vietnam. Using theoretical concepts on modernity, the environment and water from researchers Arjun Appadurai, Tim Ingold and Veronica Strang I study the political ecology of the Delta. Through interviews with farmers I found that climate change and market fluctuations are stalling economic development and significantly worsening already strong migration flows, leading to many people of working age leaving the district. Insufficient government support and dire climate projections means that the problems observed on Cu Lao Dung are only posed to grow worse.