Expanding Critical Conversations on CNE as Experienced by Indigenous Peoples in Asia and Beyond
March 15, 2023

The majority of Indigenous Peoples from around the world live in Asia. Yet, Indigenous Asia as a field of study remains underrepresented.
2022 Wall Scholar Pasang Yangjee Sherpa is developing and organizing an online lecture series to expand the critical conversation on the climate and nature emergency as it is experienced — and responded to — by Indigenous Peoples on the front lines in Asia and beyond. The series will invite 20 speakers from different geographic regions, generations and disciplinary traditions to share their expertise on the topic.
By focusing on CNE and Indigenous Asia with Indigenous speakers, this online lecture series will be a one-of-a-kind program at UBC. Sherpa also intends to use the lecture series as a resource for an undergraduate/graduate level course she is developing called Indigenous Environmentalism in Asia and Beyond. The course will be cross-listed in Critical Indigenous Studies and Asian Studies departments.
Although focused on Indigenous Asia, the lecture series will be designed to be useful to Indigenous Peoples worldwide. I hope the series will help facilitate mobilization, organization and coordination of efforts and resources to address the many challenges and concerns surrounding the climate and nature emergency.
Dr. Pasang Yangjee Sherpa
The PWIAS Catalyst Program provides funding for collaborative projects that address the urgency, scale and complexity of the climate and biodiversity crises and movements for climate justice. Dr. Sherpa’s project is a collaboration with fellow Wall Scholars, colleagues from the Asian Studies department, and external partners.