Informal Traders as Heritage Stewards: Negotiating Flood Risk, Livelihood Vulnerability, and Cultural Preservation in Vietnam’s Traditional Urban Markets

Abstract

Traditional markets in rapidly urbanizing Southeast Asia face dual pressures of intensifying urban flooding and heritage commodification. Drawing on a mixed-methods study at Thu Duc Market, Ho Chi Minh City (n=200 survey + 10 in-depth interviews), this paper examines how informal traders act as de facto heritage stewards. Quantitative data reveal high livelihood vulnerability (30-50% revenue loss per flood event) and strong willingness to participate in conservation (87%). Qualitative narratives illustrate traders’ everyday adaptive strategies, gendered experiences, and critique of top-down maladaptation (e.g., uneven plinth raising). The study conceptualizes “informal heritage stewardship” as a bottom-up governance mechanism that simultaneously mitigates flood risk and preserves cultural identity. Findings challenge conventional views of informal traders as obstacles to heritage preservation, instead positioning them as critical agents of urban resilience. Policy recommendations advocate community-led “Green Heritage Market” models to break the vicious feedback loop of flooding and degradation.