Snap Judgments
Insight Myanmar31 Okt 2025

Snap Judgments

Episode #423: Ian Taylor is a Canadian photographer whose life shifted from the film industry to decades of work and travel across Southeast Asia. His first experience was with a government-sponsored Asian Studies program in the early 1990s. His early visits to Burma during the junta’s “Visit Myanmar Year” left a strong impression, and he became involved for a short time in advertising there.

By the late 1990s, Taylor had left advertising for photography, focusing on family portraits and NGO assignments across Asia. A formative volunteer trip to Bangladesh further deepened his commitment to humanitarian work, and led him back to Burma.

Taylor left the country in 2015, but reconnected in 2023 through the Thailand-based Border Consortium (TBC). He soon embarked on a volunteer photo project in five refugee camps, describing them as “an active, bustling town with everything.” His photography resists exploitative “poverty porn” and favors portraits that reflect dignity and agency. “Every portrait, in some way, it’s a collaboration.”

Critical of the tourism industry’s distortions, Taylor remains focused on authenticity, connection, and service. In his words: “If you could go to a holiday in the Maldives or something... well, I’d rather go [to a refugee camp]!”

Episoder(509)

Welcome to the Jungle

Welcome to the Jungle

Episode #322: Hector and Dr. Paing’s story is a testament to determination in the face of overwhelming challenges. Following the 2021 military coup in Myanmar, they left their medical careers to provi...

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Love in the Time of Rebellion

Love in the Time of Rebellion

Episode #321: Growing up in Indonesia, Evy Zulyani found her passion for social justice early on, using her skills as a high school journalist to expose corruption. This experience gave her a first ta...

25 Mar 20251h 30min

Running on Empty

Running on Empty

Episode #320: Don Tajaroensuk's story is one deeply influenced by the experiences of refugees and the human rights work led by his mother. As a child growing up in Thailand, Don’s home became a tempor...

21 Mar 20251h 11min

Beyond the Golden Triangle

Beyond the Golden Triangle

Episode #319: Nyan Linn Htet, founder and managing editor of Mekong News, joins the podcast to discuss the complex dynamics that shape the media landscape, as well as the worsening conflict in eastern...

18 Mar 20251h 50min

Bonus Episode: Zenanarchism

Bonus Episode: Zenanarchism

For this Bonus Episode, we share a talk presented at Nowhere Books in Chiang Mai, which was hosted alongside Yucca, the Research Director at Exile Hub.We are including the following description which ...

16 Mar 20251h

Navigating the Inner Journey

Navigating the Inner Journey

Episode #318: Lynne Bousfield grew up in Australia, and led a fairly conventional life. But in 1975, when she was a student at the university, she received a postcard from her brother in Thailand. The...

14 Mar 20252h 29min

The Usual Suspects

The Usual Suspects

Episode #317: Derek Mitchell’s engagement with Myanmar began unexpectedly in the 1990s when he attended a human rights event featuring Aung San Suu Kyi. Years later, he became the first U.S. Special R...

11 Mar 20252h

The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games

Episode #316: “Hunger and undernutrition in Myanmar is a political failure, and it’s a conscious political failure that's devastating,” says Thin Lei Win, a journalist dedicated to exposing Myanmar’s ...

7 Mar 20252h 16min

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