Natural Connections

In one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries, where open discussion of environmental issues can be dangerous, sound and the creative arts can be a powerful tool for conversation. Myanmar is a country severely affected by climate change, with communities suffering from extreme weather, biodiversity loss, rising sea levels and devastating earthquakes. At the same time, ongoing political instability has made open discussions on climate issues increasingly difficult. 

Natural Connections is a British Council-funded project by In Place of War and Gitameit Music Institute (Yangon). It fuses the rich musical traditions of Myanmar with the UK music scene. Drawing on soundscapes captured from Myanmar’s climate-impacted regions, eight traditional musicians from Yangon utilised these sounds via their ancestral instruments. UK artists, Mel Uye-Parker and Lucy Tun then wove these elements into tracks that blended both musical worlds. These compositions are to be released via In Place of War’s EarthSonic label. 

Natural connections aims to safeguard the intangible cultural heritage of Myanmar, while empowering underrepresented voices and generating new opportunities for artistic expression and global collaborations. As Myanmar’s climate emergency intensifies, Natural Connections offers an alternative to changing the conversation around climate change and how to take direct action through creativity.