Alex Martin

Director of Travel Programs, Institute for Village Studies

About

Alex received his BA in Cultural and Regional Studies from Prescott College in 2008 and an MA in Southeast Asian Studies from Chulalongkorn University in 2016. As a lover of travel and working in multicultural environments, he spent twelve years living in Thailand where he learned to speak fluent Thai. He’s contributed to projects surrounding micro-hydro energy, sustainable agriculture and fishing, antihuman trafficking and youth outreach, village based education, and language and cultural preservation initiatives. He has also worked as an interpreter for the US Federal Courts. Alex has led over ten trips with the Institute For Village Studies in Thailand, Myanmar, India, and Bhutan.

Community Partners

IMPECT
Inter Mountain Peoples Education and Culture in Thailand Association (IMPECT) works with a variety of Indigenous Peoples sharing similar situations and experiences, applying traditional knowledge and practices to all aspects of development work. IMPECT works as an association, providing opportunities for participation and ownership of development activities to representatives of the different indigenous groups. The four main areas of action are Cultural Revival and Alternative Education, Promotion of the Environment and Natural Resource Management, Enhancement of Indigenous Peoples’ Movements and Networks and Indigenous Peoples’ Rights. Here is an article about the school we had the privilege of working with during a previous trip.

Ban TapTawan
Ban Taptawan is a Moklen village along Thailand’s Andaman coast. The Moklen are one of Thailand’s three last nomadic sea peoples and some of the few remaining worldwide. However, their traditional way of life is under threat due to large-scale coastal development, marine pollution, over-fishing, and lack of secure property rights.
To help preserve their culture and earn income for the community they are trying to create a sustainable model for tourism that shares their way of life and promotes conservation. They have also begun working with IMPECT to create larger networks between indigenous and ethnic communities in Southern Thailand and organize to advocate for their rights.