Ubon Ratchathani Floodway: Narratives of Villagers on the Floodway and Common-pool Resource Management

Abstract

This article aims to examine 1). the narratives of villagers living along Tong Waet Creek on the Ubon Ratchathani floodway and 2). their participation in the floodway project. This article uses a narrative research approach. It employs narrative inquiry to collect data from key informants along with field notes and observation. This article revealed the changes in the common pool resources. Tong Waet Creek used to be resourceful but was affected by the Ubon Ratchathani city development, resulting in water pollution that affected the community’s way of life. Though the community has had a tradition of conserving community resources since the past, community rights have been neglected and there is a lack of support for resources to address the negative impacts of development. In addition, when a development project was introduced, the community was not given the opportunity to participate in the project.  This resulted in the community lacking the power to access information and negotiate to protect community resources.