Writing a book—going from research to initial manuscript to final publication— takes time. While I was going through that process with this book, the political context changed significantly.

I set out to understand what nature and environment mean for people in Vietnam and their political system. I have worked in the broader field of ecological development and political cooperation, and I have often wondered how the cooperation partners in Asia whom I corresponded with understand the issues surrounding nature and the environment. As it turned out, these partners were less interested in international development cooperation and more in the local entanglements with different entities of the Vietnamese government. As a result, I ended up writing about sustainable development and power structures in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese environmental governance that my informants were concerned about has caused many new worries since 2021 (when I concluded my research) for Vietnamese non-state actors, international organizations and even departments within the Vietnamese government. The last three years have seen further restrictions in the opportunities to engage in political and environmental spaces. The economic decentralization that has been central to the state's governmental setup has continued to lead to decisions being made at the top state level while putting responsibility on the individual citizens. As individual clean-up campaigns and propaganda posters that encourage citizens to keep their environment clean are still going strong, prominent advocates in the environmental field have been incarcerated, among them are persons who have inspired and helped me with this research. The arrests sent shockwaves through the environmental community, with the grapevine full of speculation about why they happened. In the wider context, an understanding of the Vietnamese state's approach to governance is crucial to the bigger picture. I have not rewritten the manuscript to fit new changes since they have happened after my fieldwork. They are, nevertheless, important to bear in mind, and I have added paragraphs to point that out wherever appropriate.

The arrests and newly issued decrees were followed by anti-corruption campaigns and an increase in surveillance—for example, the staff of the restaurants where I reserved tables for dinners would always seat me at a convenient table and started to have pictures of me.