by Jen Katanoutant and Siwakorn odacho
All photographs — Siwakorn Odochao and the Ban Nong Tao community
In Northern Thailand, the Pgak’yau (Karen) community believe that humans and Earth need each other. Nature cannot host humans if we don’t take care of the land. They maintain that spiritual connection through rotational farming — a system in which forest plots are cleared, burned, cropped, and then allowed to remain fallow. During the fallow period, which lasts for 8 to 10 years, perennial crops continue to be managed and harvested as the forests grows. In this self sustaining cycle, communities grow food while the forest regenerates — allowing both to host each other.
In Walk Like A Bee, Siwakorn Odochao and the Ban Nong Tao community share snapshots of rotational farming from their hills.
