Halimatu Sa’diah, Joseph Black, Sarah Pramadani, Bintar Mupiza
Lisu women in Doi Chang village, northern Thailand, have transformed coffee into both a livelihood strategy and a medium of ecological communication. This study uses participant and non-participant observation, alongside in-depth interviews, to examine how coffee serves as a medium of ecological communication among Lisu women. The findings reveal two key realities. First, while the coffee industry in Doi Chang enhances livelihoods, it also threatens ecological balance. Second, Lisu women navigate this balance through ecological communication based on Indigenous ecological knowledge. These findings have broader implications for inclusive development. Furthermore, the study supports rights-based approaches aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 5: gender equality and SDG 15: life on land, by promoting women’s economic participation and ecological advocacy. © 2026 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Department of Women’s and Gender Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand; Department of History Education, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Yogyakarta State University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia; Public Relations Study Program, School of Communications and Social Sciences, Telkom University, Bandung, Indonesia
