Cultural representation and agency in Ê Đê rural tourism

This study examines how Ê Đê cultural actors negotiate representation and agency within rural tourism development in Đắk Lắk province, Vietnam. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, the research explores how ethnic culture is incorporated into tourism products and how cultural actors engage with governance-led and intermediary-mediated tourism systems. The findings show that Ê Đê culture is highly visible through selective and scripted representations, while cultural actors remain marginal to decision-making and narrative control. At the same time, agency is exercised through everyday negotiated practices, including informal narration, selective participation, and small-scale creative initiatives. The study advances an agency-based framework for understanding creative tourism in ethnic minority contexts.