Surviving the State: Land and Democracy in Myanmar
Friday August 28, 2026 at 8:30pm MMT • 7am PT • 10am ET • 3pm BST • 9pm ICT
Author Hilary Faxon in conversation with Myat The Thitsar, Naw Pe The Law, Tharaphi Than.
Hilary Faxon is a political ecologist who investigates critical geographies of environment, development and technology. She has worked in Myanmar since 2014 and is currently an Assistant Professor of Environmental Social Science at the University of Montana, where she directs the International Conservation & Development Program.
Myat The Thitsar is an applied researcher working at the intersections of social anthropology, political economy, media, digital politics, and humanitarian governance, with a focus on Myanmar. She holds a Ph.D. in Global Studies and is the Co-founder and Executive Director of Nyan Corridor. Previously, she was a Research Fellow at the University of Oxford’s Department of Politics and International Relations. Her research has been published in Asian Ethnicity and The International Journal of Press/Politics, with recent work examining resistance, humanitarianism, and infrapolitics in post-coup Myanmar.
Naw Pe The Law is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Center for Social Development Studies (CSDC), Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University. She holds a dual PhD in International Development Studies from Chulalongkorn University and the University of Copenhagen. Her doctoral research examined public authority, land governance, and forest governance in conflict-affected areas of Tanintharyi Region, Myanmar. With over 15 years of experience as a development practitioner, she has worked closely with local civil society organizations on indigenous rights, environmental governance, community-led conservation, and natural resource management. Her work bridges academic research and policy engagement, with particular interests in women’s leadership and participation in ethnic governance, locally led conservation, indigenous rights, and sustainable natural resource governance.
Tharaphi Than is an associate professor teaching Burmese language and culture at Northern Illinois University (NIU). Her work spans Burmese literature, media, feminism, and social movements in Myanmar, alongside efforts to expand educational opportunities for students whose academic journeys have been disrupted by conflict, displacement, and conscription. She also works pro bono at Virtual Federal University (VFU).
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See here for a Fall line-up of talks on New Books organized by Tea Circle Myanmar.
Burma Studies Group 