Dr. Miemie Wynn Byrd shares about the importance of Myanmar to the Indo-Pacific region and how the country could be on the verge of a turning point in its pursuit of democracy. One year since the military coup, Myanmar has seen an unprecedented civil disobedience movement led by Myanmar’s Generation Z and supported by the diaspora of Myanmar people located around the world.

After immigrating from Myanmar to the United States at the age of 13, Dr. Byrd’s passion for her country-of-birth emerged when the 8888 Uprising become international news in 1988.

Dr. Byrd joined the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in 2007. She researches, teaches, and publishes in the areas of U.S.-Myanmar (Burma) relations; security dynamics in Southeast Asia; economics and security linkages; rising inequality and its implication on security; the roles of private-sector, women, and education in socioeconomic development; civil-military operations; leadership; organizational development & innovation; women peace & security; and transformational learning & adult education.

The Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DKI APCSS) is a U.S. Department of Defense institute that officially opened Sept. 4, 1995, in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Center addresses regional and global security issues, inviting military and civilian representatives of the United States and Asia-Pacific nations to its comprehensive program of executive reeducation and workshops, both in Hawaii and throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

The views expressed in this video are those of the speaker and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense or its components.