Ponpavi

Ponpavi Sangsuradej specialises in postcolonial history with a focus on Myanmar and Southeast Asia. She holds a PhD in History from SOAS, University of London. Her dissertation, ‘Contesting Visions: Negotiating a Post-Colonial Future and Political Ideologues in Post-WWII Burma, 1945-1948,’ examines diverse political affiliations, ethnic minorities, and the global history of post-war internationalism during the period of Burma’s Independence negotiations. It also explores how the historical recollection of this time sustains a critical role in ongoing conflicts in modern-day Myanmar.

Ponpavi’s current research projects address topics such as federal democracy, post-war internationalism, and counter-histories. As a historian, she actively engages in debates on contemporary geopolitical issues in Asia-Pacific, having contributed to institutes like the Cambridge Centre for Geopolitics, the LSE Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre, and the Southeast Asia Research Group (SEAREG). At Chulalongkorn University, she is seeking to expand her research impact within the wider Southeast Asian scholarly network by exploring regional issues such as labor migration and border conflicts in the post-coup context.

Qualifications

• PhD in History, SOAS, University of London, UK
• MPhil in World History, University of Cambridge, UK
• BA History and Asian Studies, Bowdoin College, USA

Research Interests

• Modern history of Myanmar 
• Modern Southeast Asian history and politics
• Ethnic Minorities, ethnonationalism and borderlands 
• Resistance and decolonization
• Gender and Women’s history