I am a Sherpa anthropologist from Mount Everest region in Nepal.
Himalayan people and our issues are no longer isolated from the world beyond ours.
For the past 10+ years, my research topics have included Indigeneity, human dimensions of climate change and the Sherpa diaspora.
I use ethnographic methods to study everyday concerns of Himalayan people in order to normalize our experiences and represent us as equal partners in decision-making spaces. This has led me to engage with academic and nonacademic communities through writings, teaching, and conversations.
Some of the socio-economic and environmental forces that shape our everyday concerns include mountaineering, conservation and development, climate change, migration, and transnationalism. These topics are interrelated and inform us about the everyday concerns of mountain people from the Himalayas.
I believe that our sustainability as a people in the wake of climate change depends on keeping our stories about people, places and things alive for the next generation.
Official Bio:
Pasang Yangjee Sherpa, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of Lifeways in Indigenous Asia, jointly appointed in the Department of Asian Studies and Critical Indigenous Studies at the University of British Columbia. Her research areas include the Sherpa diaspora, human dimensions of climate change and Indigeneity in Nepal and the Himalayas. She previously taught at the New School in New York, Pacific Lutheran University, Penn State University, Washington State University and University of Washington. Her interviews have appeared in Alpinist, Al Jazeera, BBC, Foreign Policy, PRI’s The World, Newsweek, and BYU Radio’s Top of the Mind.