Thai village residents balance tourism with traditional forest culture

Noryatee Salaitongpers and Naoto Sakata work together to preserve the traditional lifestyle of the Sgo Karen people in Huai Ikan village, a mountain community in northern Thailand.

Noryatee Salaitongpers returned to her home village after working in the city of Chiang Mai. She moved back to care for her elderly grandparents and live with her family.

While she did not initially set out to save her culture, she realized the value of her community's traditions after a hospital worker questioned her for keeping a newborn's umbilical cord. This experience taught her that her community's "ordinary" customs are seen as special by outsiders. She now believes that understanding their culture is essential to protecting the surrounding forest and water resources.

Naoto Sakata, a former management consultant from Japan, moved to Thailand in 2023 and began organizing tours to Huai Ikan. He initially chose the village because it offered deep cultural experiences accessible via a day trip. After a major earthquake in Myanmar in 2025 damaged a local daycare center, Sakata and Noryatee collaborated to collect donations from tourists to repair the facility. This event deepened their partnership beyond simple tourism.

Noryatee serves as a host for visitors, showing them traditional crafts and daily life. Sakata manages the balance of the program to ensure that tourism does not overwhelm the village or destroy its way of life. They aim to provide a source of income for local women while ensuring the community's core identity remains intact.

Noryatee tells her children that the home is a place to rely on if they choose to leave the village, rather than forcing them to stay.