Climate disinformation in Thailand: Negating Indigenous Peoples’ Identity
Thailand’s digital media surge has amplified climate disinformation, making it harder for Indigenous communities to defend their rights and protect their lands. As online falsehoods spread, so does the threat to cultural heritage and environmental resilience.
Thailand is experiencing growing pressure from climate change and widespread deforestation, both of which pose significant risks to its natural ecosystems and the communities whose livelihoods depend on them. Among those most affected are Indigenous Peoples (IPs), who make up close to 14 percent of the country’s population.
The rapid digital transformation of Thailand’s media landscape since the early 2000s has fuelled the spread of online falsehoods, including climate-related disinformation. These narratives are further amplified offline — often echoed by state institutions, restrictive laws and mainstream media — contributing to the stereotyping of IPs and justifying their displacement. Together, these forces deepen the challenges of the climate crisis and weaken IPs’ ability to assert their rights and protect their territories.
Despite growing attention to climate change, deforestation and Indigenous rights in Thailand, the specific ways in which climate disinformation shapes these dynamics remain poorly understood.
This report seeks to fill that gap. It explores how climate disinformation perpetuates systemic marginalisation of IPs — eroding their cultural identity, undermining their advocacy and limiting their role in shaping forest governance and climate responses.
It offers three main contributions: mapping the dominant forms of climate disinformation in Thailand, analysing their effects on Indigenous communities, and outlining practical policy recommendations for governments, civil society and international partners.
The report is a collaborative effort between IMS and Asia Centre.
