Insight Myanmar

Episode #371: “I remain confident in the longer term, completely, actually, that this regime is losing,” says Sean Turnell, Australian economist and former advisor to Myanmar’s civilian government, a…

Episode #370: "Why are [Asian women] not allowed to dream that we can open our own thing and lead our own work?" This question by human rights lawyer Emilie Palamy Pradichit slices through the silenc…

Episode #369: “I promised Aung San Suu Kyi and committed myself to work for democracy and human rights in the country as long as necessary. And still it is necessary!” So says Kjell Magne Bondevik, f…

Episode #368: The Adhikara podcast is an important, new voice in Burmese media, aiming to build not just a movement but a resilient community against oppression. Created by Maw Nwei and Morgen after …

Episode #367: In this episode, we hear from two compelling voices grappling with the human and political costs of authoritarianism in Southeast Asia. Raoul Manuel, the youngest elected member of the …

Episode #366: Sallo Polak, founder of the Philanthropy Connections Foundation (PCF), has spent decades building a grassroots approach to humanitarian aid in Thailand, Myanmar, and Cambodia. Motivated…

Episode #365: “The Buddha lives and teaches for the welfare of the world, for the happiness of the world,” says Bhikkhu Bodhi. “He does live for the welfare and happiness of human beings. And so now,…

Episode #364: Ben’s simple words resonate strongly: “If I could do something small for one person, why would I not?” 

This episode brings together Ben and a Burmese student who goes by the moniker Lit…

Episode #363: In post-coup Myanmar, where conventional aid channels with humanitarian intentions risk getting diverted and empowering the military junta, Blockchain technology presents a nuanced alte…

Episode #362: Myanmar has recorded the world’s worst casualties from landmines and explosive ordnance for the first time, with over 1,000 casualties in 2024 alone, 29% of whom are children. The inaug…

Episode #361: “I am Burmese. I feel like it is my duty and responsibility to speak about it.” With these words, Myet opens a conversation that explores Myanmar’s past and present, weaving together pe…

Episode #360: “To have my daughter summarily decide that I was complicit in genocide, I really had to think through again my logic for taking the position that we should stay. It sent me on a lot of …

Episode #359: “The real motivating force is people, it is those human relations.” Duncan McArthur, a backpacker turned decades-long humanitarian leader, found his truth not in textbooks, but in the r…

Episode #358: The 4th International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies (ICBMS), hosted by Chiang Mai University in August 2024, brought together scholars, activists, and experts to discuss Myanmar's…

Episode #357: When Wai Yan Phyo Naing, a civilian scholar in Myanmar vocal against the human rights atrocities of the junta, received a scholarship from a Russian university to pursue his Masters, he…

Episode #356: Jonathan Crowley shares his experiences as an Assistant Teacher within the Vipassana Meditation Organization of SN Goenka. He participated in a culture that heavily prioritized rules an…

Episode #355: “You need to pay attention to what the kids care about,” says Naomi Gingold. “It will inform so much about the place that you're trying to understand, be it politics, culture, all of it…

Episode #354: Saravanan, an advocate for Myanmar's alienated Tamil community, illuminates their rich, yet overlooked, history. He describes an ancient connection, starting around 300 BC, through trad…

Episode #353: Professor Lahra Smith, a political science professor specializing in East Africa at Georgetown University, argues that Myanmar’s current struggles must be seen within a global framework…