When the winds rise and rain threatens, communities in northern Thailand have long burned Spondias pinnata pods — a plant intertwined with ritual, spirituality, and seasonal knowledge passed down through generations.
Today, climate change is disrupting the life cycle of “som poi” and the seasonal rhythms it follows. As droughts lengthen and rains grow erratic, these living traditions — and the ecological relationships they embody — are fading from daily life.
“Now there are fewer Spondias pinnata trees, and we’ve seen a decrease in some community activities as well. The changing weather is affecting the pods; sometimes they’re not perfect, or there are fewer flowers, and the fruit doesn’t last long before it becomes brittle and unusable. Another important issue is that if we boil Spondias pinnata near the road, people from other villages will come and collect it to sell. Especially before Songkran, people from both the community and outside will come searching for Spondias pinnata, practically fighting over it.”
This story reminds us that climate change is not only an environmental crisis. It is also a cultural and spiritual one, affecting Indigenous knowledge systems, practices, and connections to land and plants.
Through the Indigenous Media Network, IPAS Fund is honored to be part of efforts supporting Indigenous storytellers and community media in Thailand to document these knowledge systems and the climate realities they face.
Read the full story here
Cover photo: Ban Mae Yang Min, Sri Thoi Subdistrict, Mae Suai District, Chiang Rai Province. Photo: Surachat Samana
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