More than a year after the book’s release, I learned that some readers had misinterpreted Mountains of Change as a cheer for the ongoing tourism investment wave in Sa Pa. Such a misunderstanding is understandable, given that I named Sun Group as a case study in the book. Let me clarify: the book does not endorse the massive, relentless style of investment that Sun Group and various other enterprises are pursuing—neither in Sa Pa nor in any other region of Vietnam.

I understand that when they put in investment, they wish for the prosperity of the country, the local community, and, of course, themselves as honest laborers. Yet I call their approach “massive and relentless” because I still perceive a sense of impatience and railroading the process within it. Had we slowed down just a little, perhaps we could have made those good intention truly fulfill.

The first thing that causes me apprehension is how we utilize the culture of indigenous ethnic minority communities to attract tourists (as discussed in Chapter IV, “Cultural Exchanges”). I view culture as a sensitive domain, especially when exploited to serve tourism, because such endeavors easily drift toward ruthlessness. If we look merely at economic figures as we so often do, Sa Pa’s growth rate ought to be directly proportional to the livelihood of its indigenous people—particularly when their culture is harnessed alongside nature. Yet culture cannot be measured by those numbers. I believe the majority of us have yet to fully recognize this sensitivity.