ABSTRACTThis paper explores women's perspectives regarding access to resources in a matrilineal ethnic community in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. Customary matrilineal entitlements are not completely recognized by the state that is increasingly using force in asserting its ownership over forests and has a different vision regarding land tenure for households. Using predominantly qualitative methods, including in-depth interviews, life histories and observation, this study focuses on the strategies that K’ho women use to derive benefit from key natural resources such as wet rice fields and forest lands. Through the perspectives of three women of different ages, marital status and social background, I show how matrilineal kinship and conjugal relationships play out with respect to women's access to resources, given increasing state governance and control. I use an intersectional approach grounded in Feminist Political Ecology and insights from Ribot and Peluso's theory of access to highlight the interactions between gender, matrilineal structures and other forms of social identities in shaping access to natural resources.