Cohort 3

Promoting Harmony and Safe Migration Between Myanmar Migrants and Thai Hosts

This initiative aims to reduce tensions and mitigate the negative impacts of migration along the Thai-Myanmar border by addressing critical issues such as human trafficking, promoting safe migration, and fostering interfaith and social harmony. By engaging both Myanmar migrants and Thai host communities, the project employs a comprehensive strategy focused on community-driven solutions.
Key approaches include conducting risk mitigation analyses, facilitating interfaith and peace dialogues led by youth and religious leaders, and empowering community members through capacity-building workshops. The project also provides capacity-building training that promotes safe migration practices and combat human trafficking, ensuring long-term sustainability and local ownership. Anticipated outcomes include increased awareness about human trafficking, improved relationships between migrants and hosts, and the empowerment of youth leaders as advocates for social harmony and safe migration. The target beneficiaries for this pilot project are 15 migrant youths from Myanmar, and Mae Sot is the project implementation area. The religious leaders will be engaged in an interfaith forum recognizing peace and harmony across religions and boundaries.
The project envisions creating a safer, more cohesive community with lasting positive impacts on migrants and host populations. The project team members will mobilize resources through grant submissions to potential donors and organize food festivals involving local restaurants and food businesses located in the project area. The festival will also be a venue for stage performances from Thai and Myanmar youth and interfaith dialogue among religious leaders.

Project Team:

Nonglak Kaeophokha, Senior Program Officer, Spirit in Education Movement (SEM)
Project Role: Project Lead
Email: nkaeophokha@gmail.com  

Worrawan Jirathanapiwat, CEO & Co-founder, FN Educon Co., Ltd
Project Role: Project Co-Lead
Email: worrawan@fneducon.com 

Lalita Yawangsan, Senior Field Coordinator, Save the Children
Project Role: Project Member
Email: lalita.yawangsan@savethechildren.org 

Tin Maung Htwe, Research Fellow, Chinag Mai University
Project Role: Project Member
Email: tinmuanghtwe.peace@gmail.com 

Andy Copada Alegre, National Activation and Partnerships Lead, International Justice Mission
Project Role: Project Member
Email: dyalegrern@gmail.com
 

For more information, please email Worrawan Jirathanapiwat 

Additional Resources:
Project Accelerator _ Final Presentation

Initial Presentation

We Are Not Just Numbers: Elevating Hidden Narratives of Everyday Resistance by Women in Conflict Towards Feminist Peacebuilding

This initiative highlights and amplifies the often-overlooked narratives of women’s everyday resistance in conflict-affected areas, showcasing their critical contributions to peacebuilding. Spanning diverse regions, including India, Kenya, Myanmar, the Philippines, South Africa, South Korea, and Sri Lanka, the project adopts a feminist, de-colonial, and trauma-informed approach to document and elevate these hidden stories.

The project creates safe spaces for women-in-all-diversities to share their experiences through creative and performing arts, intergenerational dialogues, localized exchanges, digital platforms, evidence-based advocacy, and memorialization efforts. By centering on culturally specific and locally led approaches, the initiative fosters solidarity among women and enhances their agency in peacebuilding processes. Anticipated outcomes include increased visibility and recognition of women’s acts of resistance, strengthened transnational solidarity, and contributions to systemic reforms aimed at preventing gendered oppression. By addressing global power imbalances and amplifying the voices of marginalized women, the project strives to promote feminist peacebuilding and inspire broader societal and policy changes.

Project Team:

Aye Lei Tun, Ph.D. Candidate and Individual Research Consultant (Gender and Media), McMaster University
Project Role: Collect Myanmar women's narratives and bring a gender and media perspective
Email: ayeleitun@gmail.com, tuna@mcmaster.ca

Domado Haironesah, Graduate Teaching Assistant/PhD student, George Mason University Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution
Project Role: Collect women's narratives from the Philippines and bring a women's everyday resistance perspective
Email: hdomado@gmu.edu, hdomado@gmail.com

Hamsa Vijayaraghavan, Chief Operating Officer, Migration & Asylum Project India
Project Role: Collect migrant and asylum seeker women's narratives and bring a legal perspective
Email: hamsa@aratrust.in

Kiruthika Thurairajah, Consultant (Digital Peacebuilding/GESI Advisor), Independent consultant
Project Role: Collect Tamil LBTQIA+ women's narratives from Sri Lanka and bring a digital/tech peacebuilding perspective
Email: kiruthikappi@gmail.com

Lynnette Tagalo, Project Officer, ForumZFD – Philippine Program
Project Role: Collect Indigenous women's narratives in the Philippines and bring an Indigenous women's perspective
Email: tagalo@gmail.com

Maeum Han, Major Public Affairs Officer, Republic of Korea Army HQs
Project Role: Collect South Korean military women's narratives and bring an anthropological perspective
Email: boiddagi1105@gmail.com

Martha Amadalo, Mediator/International Lawyer and Lead Legal Counsel, The Judiciary of Kenya and Musimbi and Company Advocates
Project Role: Collect Kenyan women's narratives and bring a mediation/international law perspective
Email: amdalo.martha@gmail.com, simbi34@yahoo.com

Thilina Madiwala, Post-graduate student in Peace and Conflict Studies and Co-Founder and Director, The University of Queensland Australia and Social Transformative Action Network for Development Sri Lanka
Project Role: Project Lead, collect narratives from Sinhala military widows in Sri Lanka, and bring a feminist peacebuilding perspective
Email: thilina.madiwala@gmail.com

Tshegofatso Ramatsetse, Operations Officer, Johannesburg Holocaust & Genocide Centre
Project Role: Collect South African black women's narratives and bring a memorialization perspective
Email: tshego@jhbholocaust.co.za

Zainab Hassen, Founder Global Programme Coordinator Advisor, Yellow Dot CYPAN GIZ
Project Role: Collect young Muslim women's narratives from Sri Lanka and bring a communications perspective
Email: zainabmhassen@gmail.com

For more information, please email Thilina Madiwala

Additional Resources:

Project Accelerator _ Presentation

Pitch Presentation

Access to Justice: Youth for Myanmar

The Access to Justice (A2J): Youth for Myanmar initiative addresses the urgent need for legal empowerment among youth in Myanmar amidst ongoing human rights violations and systemic repression. Following the 2021 military coup, young people have been disproportionately targeted through harassment, detention, and violence, compounded by a compromised justice system. This project aims to empower youth by raising awareness of their rights, providing legal aid, and fostering dialogue through both online and offline platforms.
The project’s key strategies include developing a youth-focused legal directory/handbook, mapping legal aid services, and creating referral pathways for mental health and psychosocial support. It offers legal training for lawyers to enhance their understanding of youth protection procedures and supports the documentation of human rights violations for advocacy. By connecting local issues with global platforms, the initiative also engages international communities for the advocacy process. Anticipated outcomes include increased legal awareness, improved access to justice, and strengthened international advocacy, fostering a foundation for a more equitable and peaceful Myanmar.

Project Team:

Kyaw Min San, Director & Advocate Justice for All Law Firm
Project Role: Project Lead
Email: justiceforall.advocates@gmail.com

Yosuke Nagai, CEO, Accept International 
Project Role: Project member
Email: yosuke.nagai@accept-int.org

Priyah Thiyagarajah, Deputy Director, Program Development and Quality, Save the Children International
Project Role: Project member
Email: shanmugapriyah@gmail.com

Salina Karfle, Executive Director, Human Rights and Justice Center 
Project Role: Project member
Email: kafle.sali@gmail.com

Mohammad Jamalul Giducos, Legal consultant,  Bangsamoro Transition Authority
Project Role: Project member
Email: jamsgiducos@yahoo.com

For more information, please email Kyaw Min San

Additional Resources:

Initial Presentation

Project Accelerator _ Presentation

Bridging Indigenous Norms for Horticultural Internationalization (BINHI)

The BINHI Project seeks to address the underrepresentation and documentation of Indigenous Peoples' (IP) agricultural norms, vital for climate change adaptation and food security. This initiative aims to mainstream IP agricultural practices, fostering interregional collaboration to build sustainable and resilient food systems. By leveraging research, community engagement, stakeholder dialogue, and capacity building, BINHI ensures the integration of indigenous knowledge into global agricultural frameworks.
Through partnerships with communities in Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines, BINHI is creating tools and processes to bridge local practices with global standards, aiming to influence policies and trade practices that benefit IP communities. By 2026, the BINHI Manual will be published, providing a comprehensive guide for sustainable agricultural practices, improved food security, and resilient agricultural systems that are adaptable to environmental challenges.
BINHI Project goes beyond documentation and elevating indigenous practices to global prominence, it calls for action for sustainable development, resilient agricultural technology and the internationalization of these practices to influence trade policies favoring IP communities.

Project Team:

Jerome Bactol, Program Policy Officer, Project Manager SBCCUN World Food Program
Project Role: Project Lead
Email: jbbactol@gmail.com  

Robert Budianto, Executive Director, ASEAN region India - Peru - Indonesia (IPI) Cross Border Initiative
Project Role: Project Co-Lead
Email: budianto4@yahoo.com

Nga Nguyen Hong, Senior Public and Community Engagement Coordinator at the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU), Hanoi, Vietnam
Project Role: Project Member
Email: nguyen.hongnga@rosalux.org 

MA Erlinda Vila, Peace Program Officer V, Office Of The Presidential Adviser On Peace, Reconciliation And Unity
Project Role: Project Member
Email: erlinda.vila@peace.gov.ph

For more information, please email Jerome Bactol 

Additional Resources:

Project Accelerator _ Presentation
Initial presentation

Bridging Peace: Nurturing Young Peace Leaders Across Borders in GMS Countries

"Bridging Peace: Nurturing Young Peace Leaders Across Borders in GMS Countries" addresses the ongoing cross-border conflicts and lack of mutual understanding among young people in Cambodia, Myanmar, and Thailand. The project aims to promote social cohesion and harmony in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) by fostering a safe space and support system for emerging young peace leaders. Through a Peace Hackathon and a series of personal development and action plan activities, the project seeks to increase knowledge, shared understanding, and empathy among participants. The expected outcomes include enhanced trust, strengthened relations, and actionable peace initiatives by young leaders, ultimately contributing to long-term regional peace and cooperation.

Project Team:

Phasiree Thanasin, CEO and Co-Founder, Wocation Co., Ltd.
Project Role: Project Lead
Email: Phasiree.t@gmail.co

Aung Thura Ko Ko, Independent Researcher 
Project Role: Project Member
Email: agthura.koko@gmail.com 

Suyheang Kry, Executive Director, Women Peace Makers Organization 
Project Role: Project Advisor
Email: suyheangsri@gmail.com

Nichan Singhaputargun, Lecturer, Mae Fah Luang University 
Project Role: Project Coordinator
Email: nichan.sin@mfu.ac.th

For more information, please email Phasiree Thanasin

Additional Resources:
Initial Presentation

Enhancing Public Participation in Thailand’s Peace Process

"Enhancing Public Participation in Thailand’s Peace Process" addresses the critical issue of limited public involvement in the peace process due to misinformation, bias, and insufficient interactions. The project aims to continue and expand existing mechanisms to promote public participation in Southern Border Provinces by fostering engagement and dialogue. The approaches include conducting assessment surveys, matching local groups with organizations outside the region, and facilitating regular communication through an online platform for public consultation and engagement. The anticipated outcomes include increased public awareness, better-informed citizens, and strengthened interactions between communities and peace process stakeholders, ultimately leading to a more inclusive and effective peace process in Thailand.

Project Team:

Additional Resources:
Initial Presentation

Towards Sustainable Peace: Understanding and Addressing Systematic Oppression Perpetuated by Authoritarian Regimes

"Towards Sustainable Peace: Understanding and Addressing Systematic Oppression Perpetuated by Authoritarian Regimes" aims to investigate the forms, patterns, and systems of oppression in Myanmar, particularly under authoritarian rule. The project focuses on researching these mechanisms from societal to national levels, incorporating insights from social science, psychology, and socio-cultural perspectives. The objectives include creating educational materials through mass media and artivism, such as cartoons, poetry, and documentary films, to raise awareness and inform future policymaking. The expected outcomes are an enhanced understanding of systematic oppression, prevention of further entrenchment of dictatorships, and the promotion of sustainable peace in Myanmar.

For more information, please email Pyae Phyo Thant

Additional Resources:
Initial Presentation

Project Team:

Oshan Gunathilake, Consultant, Arigatou International
Project Role: Project Co-Lead
Email: oshanmg@gmail.com

Staci  Martin, EdD, Fulbright Scholar, Rotary Peace Fellow, faculty member, Portland State University
Project Role: Project Lead
Email: martinstaci24@gmail.com

Sithen Sum, Executive Director, Sunflower Film  Organization
Project Role: Project Member
Email: sithenos10@gmail.com

Risa Pieters, Deputy Director  of Global Programs, Asia-Pacific Lead, The Obama  Foundation
Project Role: Project Member
Email: rpieters@obama.org

Mohit Pant, Juris Doctor  Candidate, University of  Canberra
Project Role: Project Member
Email: mohitpant@me.com

Nishchhal  Kharal, Executive Director, Freedom Studio 
Project Role: Project Member
Email: nishchhalkharal@studiofreedom.org

Nurlia  Dian Paramita, National  Coordinator, People’s Voter  Education Network 
Project Role: Project Member
Email: ndipa21@gmail.com

Kishoth Navarathnarajah, Co-Founder, DreamSpace  Academy 
Project Role: Project Member
Email: kisho694@gmail.com

For more information, please email Oshan Gunathilake

Additional Resources:

Accelerator _ Presentation
POP-ed _ Concept Note