SEACHA at COP28: “Climate Actions: Lost in Translations!”
The panel will highlight Southeast Asian youth perspectives on how we can fill in the gaps between climate knowledge communications and climate actions. The topic will specifically focus on vulnerable ethnolinguistic communities such as Indigenous and local peoples. Language barriers hinder the implementation of climate action policies that recognize the insights of marginalized communities, even though Indigenous and underrepresented local groups are often the ones most affected by climate change. Their heightened vulnerability to these challenges underscores the importance of involving them in meaningful discussions about effective solutions. This presentation aims to emphasize the need for an inclusive climate action approach that understands the imperative role of language in conveying climate action and safeguarding the traditional knowledge of at-risk ethnolinguistic communities in Southeast Asia.
Speaker
Ms. Kamorichan Osthananda
Kamori Osthananda is a Thai humanitarian interested in post-colonial development through psychological and intersectional lenses. She has served as a panelist for the Digital Sexuality Education Conference Asia-Pacific 2021 supported by the UNFPA,UNICEF, and UNESCO. She has also participated in the World Bank Group Youth Summit 2022: Unlocking the Power of Inclusion for Equitable Growth, and been featured in media for her advocacy on menstrual equity. She is a SEACHA Youth Alumni.
Ms. Anh Tho Le Bui
Lê Bùi “Celia” Anh Thơ, is a SEACHA Youth Alumni, social justice advocate, and artist based in New York hailing from Hồ Chí Minh City, Vietnam. She currently works for the Center for Innovation in Mental Health at the City University of New York’s Graduate School for Public Health and Health Policy. Celia obtained her B.A. in Linguistics and East Asian Studies from Columbia University and is passionate about indigenous languages, queer liberation, grassroots organizing, and health justice.
Ms. Supitcha Sutthanonkul
Supitcha Sutthanonkul a SEACHA Youth Alumni and graduate of World Heritage Studies master’s program at Brandenburg University of Technology, Germany. She is interested in World Heritage, holistic heritage conservation, industrial heritage, and forestry heritage. She is a full-time researcher at Southeast Asian Regional Centre for Archaeology and Fine Arts (SEAMEO SPAFA) and is working on (World) Heritage-related projects in Thailand.
Moderator
Ms. Royce Lyssah Malabonga
Royce Lyssah Malabonga is a Foreign Service Officer, Department of Foreign Affairs, Pasay City, Philippines. She is an advocate for cultural heritage protection and empowerment of indigenous communities. Her field of research is intangible cultural heritage, particularly cultural elements that are at risk of endangerment. She envisions that the ancient wisdom of indigenous communities will be recognized and integrated in national and international climate change mitigation strategies.
Watch the full presentations from “Climate Action – Lost in Translations: Language Barriers in Communicating Climate to the People” on the SEACHA Youtube video provided below.
