Outsider Roles in the Tenggerese's Change in Ngadas Village

Abstract

The Tengger people are firmly in preserving the socio-cultural inherits they received from their ancestors for hundreds of years. Customary norms and institutions have been used to maintain this valuable aspect. In its development, new, complex challenges forced the community in Ngadas Village to adapt to the existing realities, transforming them. The National Tourism Strategic Area Policy and the status of this village as a tourist village have triggered many changes. This paper reflects the 2016-2020 process when the authors interacted with the Tengger community and conducted research in this village. The article was composed based on some field observations and unstructured interviews with several key persons from community representatives, complemented by descriptive analysis to reveal the extent and how this society is changing slowly. Based on this process, it can be confirmed that the Ngadas people have changed, although only in some aspects. The changes are mainly influenced by the responses of this community to its surroundings, especially by various tourism programs and activities. Customary rules, in this case, have also changed to be more flexible. At this point, various types of outsiders, including tourism actors, play a role in supporting this change process from various sides. Some outsiders influence economic change, others in socio-cultural changes, while others play a significant role in physical and environmental changes. Indeed, not all changes are positive; therefore, how the local community interacts with outsiders is critical in this long adaptation process. At the same time, it will also determine the future face of the Tenggerese in Ngadas Village.