UUKS Seminar | Women weaving indigenous Karen ontologies and modern science | Sunita Kwangta & Charlotte Clare

Myanmar, a country rich in biodiversity, is facing severe threats from escalating armed conflicts and environmental degradation, especially following the 2021 military coup. Indigenous lands are particularly vulnerable, suffering from deforestation, unregulated mining, land grabs, and invasive infrastructure projects that devastate ecosystems.

Indigenous peoples who have long stewarded these lands now bear the dual burden of protecting their territories while navigating conflict, displacement, and entrenched marginalization. Despite these challenges, Karen indigenous communities remain resilient. Drawing on traditional ecological knowledge passed down through generations, they continue to preserve biodiversity, protect their ancestral lands, and confront the impacts of climate change. In the Salween Peace Park in Kawthoolei, Southeastern Myanmar, Karen indigenous women play a vital role in conservation, community resilience, and the (re)generation of traditional knowledge, leading efforts to safeguard their culture and environment.

Speakers

Sunita Kwangta (Moo) is the Women’s Research Coordinator at the Karen Environmental and Social Action Network. Originally from the S’Gaw Karen community, she was born in a village along the Myanmar-Thailand border. She graduated from the International College at Chiang Mai Rajabhat University. Sunita has been working with Karen indigenous women for two years to document and preserve local biodiversity in Salween Peace Park, Kawthoolei, Karen State in Myanmar. She focuses on empowering women through research collaboration and environmental conservation.

Charlotte (Lotty) Clare is the Advocacy and Research Officer at the Karen Environmental and Social Action Network, where she focuses on advancing the rights and recognition of indigenous women in environmental governance. She collaborates with the Karen Women’s Research Group on ethnobotany and biodiversity research. With years of experience supporting civil society and environmental organizations in Myanmar, Lotty brings experience in project development and fundraising to her advocacy. She is deeply committed to transformative grassroots initiatives that envision a more just and equitable future for all living beings. 

Moderator

Adrian Perkasa is a postdoctoral researcher at the KITLV. His research is about Pranata Mångsa, a Javanese agricultural calendar; cultural heritage and the politics of knowledge (re)production. Furthermore, his project involves inventorying and researching the histories, practices, and uses of Pranata Mångsa and other grass-roots knowledge about agricultural calendars and seasons in Java.

Format, date, time & venue

This seminar is a hybrid event and will be held in the conference room of KITLV, Herta Mohr building, room 1.30, Witte Singel 27 A, Leiden and online via Zoom, on Thursday 28 November from 15.30 – 17.00 PM (CET).

Registration

If you want to join this seminar on location, please register via: [email protected].

If you wish to join this seminar online, please register here.

UUKS

This seminar is part of the monthly Unraveling Unconventional Knowledge Systems (UUKS) seminar series.

Image

The Karen Women’s Research Group during their research on fungi. Photo by the Women’s Research Group.